THE  CENTENNIAL  OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 

1921 


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THE  CENTENNIAL 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 
18I9-I92I 


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a 


THE  CENTENNIAL 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 

1819-1921 


THE  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  CENTENARY 
CELEBRATION.   MAY  31    TO   JUNE  3.    1921 


£ditocial  Committee 

JOHN  CALVIN  METCALF.  Chairman 
FISKE  KIMBALL  BRUCE  WILLIAMS 

ROBERT  HENNING  WEBB         JAMES  SOUTHALL  WILSON 


G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 

NEW  YORK  AND  LONDON 

XTbe    fcnicfterbocher    press 

1922 


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COMMITTEES  IN  CHARGE  OF  THE  CELEBRATION 

JOHN  LLOYD  NEWCOMB,  GENERAL  CHAIRMAN 
The  President  of  the  University  was  ex  officio  a  member  of  all  committees 

Executive  Committee 

J.  L.  Newcomb,  Chairman 
The  President  of  the  University 
Albert  Lefevre 
L  F.  Lewis 


Programs  and  Invitations 

J.  S.  Wilson 
E.  A.  Alderman 
Fiske  Kimball 

Religious  Exercises 

J.  C.  Metcalf 
Theodore  Hough 
W.  M.  Thornton 


Music 

Arthur  Fickenscher 
A.  G.  A.  Balz 
Fiske  Kimball 

Formal  Exercises 

Albert  Lefevre 
E.  A.  Alderman 
T.  C.  Flippin 
J.  J.  Luck 


Entertainment  of  Delegates 

J.  S.  Davis 
W.  M.  Lile 
J.  H.  Nefif 
S.  H.  Watts 

Enrollment  oj  Delegates 

R.  H.  Webb 
G.  B.  Eager 
J.  S.  McLemore 
R.  C.  Minor 

Dinner  to  Delegates 

W.  S.  Rodman 
W.  M.  Coates 
W.  Eldred 
G.  O.  Ferguson 
T.  R.  Snavely 

Centennial  Volume  of  Poems 

T.  C.  Metcalf 
J.  S.  Wilson 


Centennial  Pageant 

W.  M.  Forrest 
F.  H.  Abbot 
W.  H.  Faulkner 
S.  J.  Makielski 
C.  G.  Maphis 

President's  Reception 

Graham  Edgar 
J.  S.  Davis 

Pilgrimage  to  Monticello 

S.  A.  Mitchell 
I.  F.  Lewis 
C.  P.  Olivier 
W.  S.  Rodman 


Reunion  of  World  War 
Alumni 

W.  H.  Goodwin 
Robert  Allen 
A.  G.  A.  Balz 
L.  D.  Crenshaw 
Lucian  Cocke 


THE  ALUMNI 
Registration  of  Alumni 

G.  Carter 

G,  O.  Ferguson 


Entertainment  of  Alumni 

W.  A.  Lambeth 
E.  I.  Carruthers 
J.  A.  Cole 
L.  D.  Crenshaw 
H.  P.  Johnson 
W.  A.  Kepner 


--•»••/ «)  «J  %i 


vi  Committees  in  Charge  of  the  Celebration 


DEPARTMENTAL  ALUMNI  MEETINGS 


Collegiate  Alumni 


J.  M.  Page 
R.  M.  Bird 
R.  H.  Dabney 
W.  H.  Faulkner 
L.  G.  Hoxton 
J.  L.  Manahan 
C.  G.  Maphis 
T.  L.  Watson 


Clerical  Alumni 

W.  M.  Thornton 
W.  M.  Forrest 

The  Clergymen  of  the  City  of 
Charlottesville 


Law  Alumni 


R.  C.  Minor 
W.  M.  Lile 
C.  A.  Graves 
G.  B.  Eager 


Medical  Alumni 


Theodore  Hough 
H.  E.  Jordan 
H.  T.  Marshall 
J.  A.  Waddell 


Engineering  Alumni 

W.  M.  Thornton 
Charles  Hancock 
E.  W.  Saunders 


Alumni  Barbecue  and  Torch- 
light Parade 

L.  D.  Crenshaw 
W.  H.  Echols 
William  Matthews 
Rice  Warren 


FOREWORD 

The  University  of  Virginia  was  founded  in  1819  by  Thomas 
Jefferson.  The  celebration  of  its  one-hundredth  anniversary  was  de- 
layed from  19 19  to  1 92 1  because  of  disturbed  world  conditions  follow- 
ing the  Great  War.  Prior  to  the  Centennial  there  appeared  the  monu- 
mental History  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  by  Philip  Alexander 
Bruce,  LL.D.,  the  notable  offering  of  a  distinguished  alumnus  and 
historian;  and  coincident  with  that  event  was  published  a  volume  of 
poems,  The  Enchanted  Years,  contributed  in  honor  of  the  occasion  by 
poets  of  America  and  Great  Britain.  Shortly  before  the  Centennial 
Celebration,  there  was  shown  on  the  moving-picture  screen  in  Vir- 
ginia and  other  states  a  series  of  important  events  and  noteworthy 
scenes  in  the  history  of  the  University  from  the  days  of  Jefferson  and 
Poe  to  the  present. 

The  following  pages  set  forth  in  order  the  proceedings  of  that 
historic  occasion  which  covered  four  days,  May  3i-Jime  3,  1921. 
Most  of  the  addresses  delivered,  a  few  representative  greetings,  and 
the  text  of  the  Centennial  Pageant  are  included,  together  with  a  num- 
ber of  illustrations  which  will  make  more  vivid  to  the  reader  certain 
memorable  scenes.  While  the  voltime  is  primarily  a  record  of  the 
Centennial  Celebration,  it  is  in  a  larger  sense  an  interpretation  of  the 
spirit  of  an  institution  through  a  himdred  years  of  service  to  State  and 
Nation. 


vu 


CONTENTS 


Proceedings  of  First  Day  .... 

Addresses:    Religion  at  the  University  of  Virginia,  by  William 
Alexander  Barr,  D.D. 
A  Prophecy  of  America,  by  Henry  van  Dyke,  D.D 
LL.D.,  D.C.L. 

Proceedings  of  Second  Day        .... 

Address  of  Welcome,  by  President  Alderman     . 
Responses:  President  Chandler  of  the  College  of  William  and 
Mary        ..... 

President  Lowell  of  Harvard  University 
Ambassador  Jusserand 
Greetings  from  Universities  and  Other  Institutions 
List  of  Delegates    ...... 

Unveiling  of  Tablet  Memorial  to  World  War  Alumni 
Invocation,  by  Rev.  Beverley  D.  Tucker,  Jr. 
Remarks,  by  Presiding  Officer,  Col.  Cutchins 
Address,  by  Captain  A.  D.  Barksdale 
Address,  by  Rector  Bryan 
The  Centennial  Pageant  .... 

Foreword,  by  Professor  W.  M.  Forrest 

The  Shadow  of  the  Builder :  text  of  the  Pageant 

Proceedings  of  Third  Day  .... 

Greetings  from  ex-President  Woodrow  Wilson   . 

Address,  by  the  British  Ambassador 

Address,  by  Professor  John  Bassett  Moore,  of  Columbia  Univeristy 

The  Pilgrimage  to  Monticello  .... 

Address,  by  Judge  R.  T.  W.  Duke,  Jr. 

Address,  by  Professor  Archibald  C.  Coolidge,  of  Harvard 

University    ...... 


3-18 
4 

14 

19-86 
21 

23 

27 

27 

30-40 
40-46 

46-54 
46 

47 
48 

51 

55-86 

55 
58 

87-122 

87 
90 

97 

102-111 

102 

107 


Contents 


PAGE 


The  Dinner  to  Delegates  .......     111-122 

Responses:    Jacob  Gould  Schurman,  ex-President  of  Cornell 

University           .          .          .          ,          .          ,  iii 

Rev.  Anson  Phelps  Stokes  of  Yale  University   .  115 
President  Harry  W.  Chase  of  the  University  of 

North  Carolina  .         .         .         .         .  n8 
Hon.   Thomas  W.   Gregory,   former  Attorney- 
General  of  the  United  States        .          .          .  120 

Proceedings  of  Fourth  Day        .......      123-235 

Presentation  of  the  Distinguished  Service  Cross  of  Serbia  to  the 

President  of  the  University,  by  Dr.  Rosalie  S.  Morton          .  123 

Invocation,  by  Rev.  George  L.  Petrie        .          .          .          .          .  129 

Centennial  Address,  by  President  Alderman  of  the  University  of 

Virginia            .........  131 

Announcements  by  the  President  of  the  University    .          .          .  138 
Departmental  Alumni  Conferences : 

The  Clerical  Alumni:    Address,  by  Rev.  B.  D.  Tucker,  Jr.   .  140 

Address,  by  Rev.  S.  C.  Mitchell         .  143 

Address,  by  Rev.  Thomas  C.  Johnson  143 

Address,  by  Rev.  B.  A.  Abbott          .  146 

The  Law  Alumni:    Address,  by  Dean  W.  M.  Lile         .          .  149 

Address,  by  Randolph  C.  Coleman          .  159 

The  Medical  Alumni:    Address  by  Dr.  WiUiam  H.  Wilmer  .  162 

The  Engineering  Alumni:    Paper,  by  Allen  J.  Saville  .          .  169 

Paper,  by  Walter  J.  Laird           .  171 

Paper,  by  W.  C.  Lancaster          .  173 

Paper,  by  M.  O.  Troy         .          .  177 

Paper,  by  John  Marshall    .          .  186 

The  Collegiate  Alumni:    Paper,  by  Professor  W.  H.  Faulkner  186 

Paper,  by  Professor  R.  H.  Fife  198 

Paper,  by  Professor  H.  C.  Lancaster  206 

Paper,  by  Professor  M.  P.  Tilley    .  209 
The  Mathematical  and  Science  Group:   Paper,  by  Dr.  C.  L. 

Reese           .  214 
Paper,  by  Dr.  W.  J. 

Humphreys  219 

The  Educational  Group :    Paper,  by  Professor  J.  W.  Wayland  224 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


FACING 
PAGB 


The  Karl  Bitter  Statue  of  Jefferson  on  West  Lawn        Frontispiece 

Centennial  Medal    ..... 

Academic  Procession  to  Vespers 

President  Alderman  and  Governor  Davis 

President  Chandler,  President  Lowell,  etc. 

French  Ambassador,  Dr.  van  Dyke,  etc. 

Greetings,  University  of  Cambridge 

Greetings,  University  of  Geneva 

Greetings,  University  Athens 

Greetings,  University  Wisconsin 

Greetings,  Cornell  University 

Greetings,  Jewish  Theological  Seminary 

Tablet  Memorial  to  World  War  Alumni 

Unveiling  of  Tablet  Memorial 

Scenes  from  Moving-picture  Screen 

The  Pageant:  Jefferson  and  his  Granddaughter 

Greek  Dancing  at  the  Pageant 

President  of  the  University  Introducing  British  Ambassador 

British  Ambassador  Speaking  in  Amphitheatre 

Academic  Procession  from  Rotunda  to  Amphitheatre 

Old  Alumni  in  Procession         ..... 

A  Writ  of  Summons 

Lawn  and  Cabell  Hall  from  Rotunda 
Fireworks  on  Lawn  :  the  Closing  Scene 


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14 
22 
26 

28 
30 
32 
34 
36 
38 
40 
48 
52 
56 
62 
82 
90 

94 
132 
138 
150 
190 
232 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 


THE  FIRST  DAY 

The  opening  day  of  the  Centennial  was  devoted  mainly  to  religious 
services.  The  first  public  meeting  was  held  in  Cabell  Hall  in  com- 
memoration of  the  religious  contribution  of  the  University.  A  some- 
what more  formal  ftinction,  with  academic  procession,  was  the  Vesper 
Service  on  the  same  day,  followed  at  night  by  the  Organ  Recital,  the 
first  exercise  in  the  new  open-air  theatre.  The  day's  program  was  as 
follows: 

Tuesday,  May  31st 

1 1 .00  A.M.  Exercises  in  Commemoration  of  the  Influence  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia  in  the  Religious  Life  of  the  Nation. 
Cabell  Hall.  Address  by  the  Reverend  William  Alex- 
ander Barr,  '92,  D.D.,  Dean  of  Christ  Church  Cathedral, 
New  Orleans.  Invocation  by  Reverend  B.  F.  Lipscomb, 
D.D.,  of  Charlottesville 

The  anthems  were  simg  by  the  Albemarle  Choral  Club, 
directed  by  Arthur  Fickenscher,  Professor  of  Music, 
University  of  Virginia 

6.00  P.M.  Vesper  Services.  Cabell  Hall.  Sermon  by  the  Reverend 
Henry  VAN  Dyke,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  D.C.L.,  Murray  Prof essor 
of  English  Literature,  Princeton  University.  Invocation 
by  Reverend  George  L.  Petrie,  D.D.,  of  Charlottesville. 
The  music  was  by  the  Albemarle  Choral  Club,  directed 
by  Arthur  Fickenscher,  Professor  of  Music,  University 
of  Virginia 

8.30  P.M.  Organ  Recital,  by  Humphrey  John  Stewart,  Mus.D., 
Municipal  Organist  of  San  Diego,  dedicating  the  Amphi- 
theatre, gift  of  Paul  Goodloe  Mclntire  ('79) 

3 


4  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

ADDRESSES  ON  THE  FIRST  DAY 

RELIGION  AT  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 
By  William  Alexander  Barr,  D.D. 

If  by  education  is  meant,  in  a  general  way,  the  enterprise  of  fitting  the 
youth  of  a  country,  through  the  medium  of  definite  and  directed  effort,  to 
meet  the  issues  of  adult  life  in  the  most  efficient  and  satisfactory  manner : — 
then  we  may  say  that  educational  methods  were  known  to  the  ancient  world. 

Leaving  apart  such  practices  as  obtained  in  behalf  of  the  mental  dis- 
cipline of  the  young  among  the  early  peoples  of  the  Orient,  we  find  formal 
educational  methods  embedded  in  the  very  structure  of  the  Greek  and 
Roman   civilizations. 

The  Greek  conception  of  the  value  of  a  man's  life,  in  the  most  cultivated 
centers  like  Athens,  consisted  in  an  estimate  of  his  fitness  to  be  of  use  to  the 
city-state.  It  was  sought  to  effect  this  end  through  the  study  of  art  and 
literature  and  the  systematic  training  of  his  body  through  the  means  of 
gymnastics. 

In  the  earlier  history  of  the  Romans  we  find  the  attempts  at  education 
much  ruder  and  more  insufficient,  but  as  the  empire  grew  in  enlightenment 
and  power  it  borrowed  much  from  the  Greeks  and,  in  its  riper  civilization, 
developed  a  system  of  education.  As  however  the  Greek  civilization  was 
already  decadent,  it  proved  to  be  the  form  rather  than  the  spirit  of  its  culture 
which  was  taken  over  and  the  study  of  rhetoric  and  philosophy  deteriorated 
rather  than  advanced  under  their  course  of  development. 

When  Christianity  came  into  the  world  it  confronted  this  decaying 
civilization  and  its  adherents  not  only  hesitated  but  definitely  questioned 
the  attitude  they  should  assume  towards  the  classical  culture.  Should  they 
use  what  they  found  as  a  medium  for  their  own  education  and  development, 
or  should  the  pagan  culture  be  swept  entirely  aside  as  an  evil  thing  and  un- 
worthy of  those  to  whom  the  true  light  had  shined  ?  But  as  is  readily  under- 
stood, this  question  resolved  itself.  Christianity  revealed  at  once  its  ability 
to  transfigure  all  that  it  touched,  so  that  the  commonest  things,  when  pene- 
trated with  its  light,  assumed  a  new  beauty  and  a  transcendent  meaning. 
In  a  very  real  sense,  then,  it  was  able  to  change  the  so-called  "profane  learn- 
ing" of  the  ancient  world  into  sacred  learning.  From  the  first,  too,  Chris- 
tianity in  its  contact  with  the  things  of  the  world,  betrayed  an  inherent 
selective  principle  by  means  of  which  it  was  able  to  choose  from  the  pagan 
learning  all  that  was  fine  and  noble  and  reject  what  was  unwholesome  and 
puerile.  And  thus  it  came  about,  in  the  process  of  time,  that  the  little  flock 
entered  into  its  kindgom :  the  Christian  church  became  the  patron  of  educa- 
tion and  scholarship  and,  under  her  guidance,  great  universities  grew  up 
all  over  the  world. 


s 


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Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  5 

The  Christian  university  has  represented  the  highest  type  of  education 
as  it  has  the  best  scholarship  that  the  world  has  known.  This  eminence 
that  has  been  attained  by  Christian  scholarship  it  is  not  difficult  to  account 
for.  That  selective  principle  to  which  I  have  just  referred  accounts  for 
much.  From  the  first,  and  all  along  its  history,  it  has  chosen  the  best  of 
that  which  was  in  the  world  and  has  shown  the  same  wisdom  in  dealing  with 
the  investigations  that  scholarship  has  been  making  all  along  its  path.  This 
is  particularly  true  of  intellectual  activity  in  the  physical  realm.  With  all 
that  has  come  to  it  in  the  nature  of  discovery  it  has  been  able  to  sift  out  that 
which  was  of  permanent  worth  and  to  reject  that  which  was  spurious  or 
ephemeral.  Its  mission  in  the  intellectual  world  has  been  to  prove  all 
things  and  to  hold  fast  to  that  which  was  good.  Out  of  the  chaff  it  has  per- 
petually sifted  the  good,  the  beautiful  and  true  and  to  those  it  has  tena- 
ciously clung. 

Moreover,  Christianity  was  destined  to  work  out  the  loftiest  ideal  of 
scholarship  because  of  its  inherently  progressive  spirit.  Just  because  it 
carried  with  it  the  touchstone  for  determining  what  was  good  and  true,  it 
could  advance  with  perfect  assurance  upon  all  unexplored  territory  and  thus 
perpetually  extend  its  body  of  knowledge.  It  made  the  intellectual  en- 
quirer perfectly  free.  He  felt  himself  in  his  Father's  house  where  all  things 
were  his  because  he  was  Christ's  and  Christ  was  God's.  So  he  can  still 
always  advance  because  he  is  freed  from  superstition  and  fear.  His  natural 
attitude  is  one  of  looking  forward.  His  is  an  inheritance  of  promise,  of  hope, 
of  expectancy.  He  is  bidden  to  forget  the  things  that  are  behind  and  reach 
forward  to  the  things  that  are  before.  Thus  he  is  equipped  for  the  highest 
functions  of  scholarship  in  investigating,  in  testing,  and  in  classifying  and 
arranging.  He  works  with  his  face  towards  the  sunrise.  He  is  thrilled  not 
so  much  with  what  has  been  as  with  what  shall  be.  He  realizes  that  his  is  a 
flying  goal.  His  is  the  inspiration  of  an  abiding  vision  of  the  revelation  of 
new  truth,  of  the  unfolding  vistas  of  new  fields  of  knowledge. 

But  while  the  eager  and  fearless  forward  gaze  has  been  the  glory  of 
Christian  scholarship,  it  has  preserved  along  with  it  a  due  reverence  for  the 
past  and  a  just  appreciation  of  its  value  to  the  present.  And  any  so-called 
scholarship  that  would  entirely  break  with  the  past  and  disregard  its  esti- 
mates must  eventually  become  frivolous  and  fantastic.  It  is  self-evident  in 
any  specific  department  of  intellectual  discipline,  as  in  mathematics  for 
example,  that  the  profoundest  genius  of  the  world  could  make  no  worthy 
contribution  to  the  advancement  of  the  science  if  he  declined  to  treat  with 
the  findings  of  the  past  and  undertook  to  build  up  for  himself  the  whole 
fabric  from  its  foundation.  Even  if  one  possessed  the  necessary  faculty, 
life  is  all  too  short  for  the  accomplishment  of  such  a  task.  It  is  in  accepting 
the  results  of  the  past  that  one  makes  true  progress  in  the  present.    The 


6  Centennial  of  tlie  University  of  Virginia 

same  thing  is  true,  of  course,  as  to  scholarship  in  general.  It  is  by  picking 
up  the  standard  where  our  predecessors  have  dropped  it  that  we  may  hope 
to  carry  it  some  distance  towards  the  heights  of  victory.  The  best  scholar- 
ship is  then  wisely  conservative  as  it  is  fearlessly  progressive.  It  reflects 
that  the  present  has  its  roots  in  the  past  and  that  it  must  always  be  inter- 
preted in  the  light  of  that  past.  The  face  is  indeed  turned  to  the  future,  but 
all  the  while  the  feet  are  planted  firmly  upon  the  past. 

So  long  then  as  scholarship  is  Christian  it  will  be  characterized  by  true 
conservatism.  In  this  it  only  profits  by  its  earliest  lesson,  that  we  press 
most  effectively  towards  the  future  prize  as  we  cherish  the  precious  inherit- 
ance of  those  who  have  wrought  in  the  light  that  shines  in  Him  who  lived 
and  died  for  men. 

It  is  this  Christian  scholarship  that  has  found  its  expression  in  the 
universities  that  have  existed  over  the  world  for  hundreds  of  years,  and  it 
was  for  the  advancement  of  Christian  scholarship  and  Christian  education 
that  universities  grew  up  in  this  country.  Indeed  the  oldest  of  our  universi- 
ties had  their  beginnings  as  denominational  colleges.  It  was  chiefly  for  the 
training  of  their  own  ministry  that  they  were  brought  into  being. 

Thomas  Jefferson,  however,  entertained  a  broader  conception  of  what 
a  university  should  be.  He  thought  it  should  be  carried  on  under  the 
auspices  of  the  state  and  minister  to  the  educational  needs  of  all  the  people 
without  regard  to  any  religious  distinctions  whatever.  In  his  proposal  for 
a  university,  he  aimed  no  blow  at  any  religious  influence  that  might  be 
fostered  by  it.  The  blow  was  at  sectarianism  only:  at  the  religious  tests 
and  shibboleths  which  he  conceived  as  obstructing  the  most  effective  work 
of  an  educational  institution.  Surprise  has  sometimes  been  expressed  that 
there  should  have  existed  at  any  time,  among  the  people,  the  impression 
that  the  University  of  Virginia  was  irreligious  or  even  non -religious  in  its 
character.  But  under  the  circumstances  it  could  hardly  have  been  otherwise. 
Jefferson  was  known  to  be  liberal  in  his  religious  views  and,  a  hundred  years 
ago,  Liberalism  carried  with  it  the  suspicion  of  practical  unbelief.  A  hun- 
dred years  ago,  moreover,  impatience  with  sectarianism  was  easily  inter- 
preted as  a  want  of  sympathy  with  the  Christian  Faith  itself.  The  founder 
of  the  University  himself  complained  of  the  report  that  the  influences  of  the 
institution  were  opposed  to  all  religion  and  called  it  a  calumny.  Let  us 
believe,  however,  that  it  was  through  no  vicious  motive  that  such  charges 
became  current,  but  through  a  misunderstanding  of  the  freedom  and  tolera- 
tion which  were  contemplated  in  all  matters  of  religion. 

As  a  matter  of  fact  we  know  that  so  far  as  concerns  the  religious  in- 
fluence of  this  institution,  from  its  very  inception  the  wind  has  always 
blown  in  a  single  direction.  In  his  plans  Mr.  Jefferson  himself  suggested 
that  there  should  be  space  for  a  building  to  be  used  for  religious  worship 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  7 

under  what  he  called  "impartial  regulation."     In  the  meantime  two  of  the 
best  rooms  in  the  main  building  were  to  be  set  apart  for  the  purpose. 

Here  then,  at  the  very  outset,  he  not  only  revealed  his  sympathy  with 
religious  influence,  but  set  the  stamp  of  his  approval  upon  the  provision  by 
the  state  of  a  place  and  equipment  for  religious  worship.  As  a  matter  of  fact 
such  an  engagement  was  entered  into  by  the  state.  It  was  fulfilled  in  some- 
thing of  a  round-about  way,  providing  first  for  a  room  in  the  building  and 
later,  in  lieu  of  the  permanent  provision  of  a  building,  making  a  fixed  con- 
tribution to  the  expenses  incident  to  maintaining  stated  services. 

Mr.  Jefferson  insisted  only  that  the  whole  affair  of  the  religious  activity 
of  the  University  should  be  wholly  voluntary.  Religious  services  were  to  be 
sustained  by  free-will  contributions  and  no  one  was  to  be  compelled  to  at- 
tend such  services.  All  was  to  be  left  to  the  individual  conscience.  But  it 
must  not  be  overlooked  that  he  went  out  of  his  way  to  say  that  every  rea- 
sonable influence  might  be  exerted  to  persuade  the  young  men  to  avail 
themselves  of  these  privileges  which  would  "instil  in  them  the  principles  of 
virtue." 

While  on  this  subject  let  me  take  occasion  to  say  that  by  this  time  it 
should  be  known  far  beyond  the  confines  of  this  university  that  Mr.  Jeffer- 
son expressed  the  hope  that  the  various  religious  bodies  would  establish 
theological  seminaries  in  the  neighborhood .  In  this  he  thought  of  the  benefit 
they  might  derive  from  the  use  of  the  University  library  as  well  as  its  courses 
and  scholastic  functions;  as  also  the  mutual  uplift  to  be  realized  through  the 
interpenetration  of  the  faculties  and  students. 

This  suggestion  was  but  another  indication  of  that  shrewd  practical 
sense  that  marked  the  great  statesman.  The  Presbyterians  of  the  North 
know  only  too  well  the  advantage  that  has  inured  to  them  through  the  long 
affiliation  of  their  seminary  with  Princeton  University.  In  the  same  way, 
Union  Seminary  in  New  York  profits  immeasurably  from  its  proximity  to 
Columbia  University  and  its  terms  of  reciprocity  with  that  institution. 
And  who  can  doubt  that  if  this  suggestion  had  been  heeded  there  would 
have  grown  up  here  a  great  community  to  shed  luster  incalculable  upon  the 
church,  the  state,  and  the  general  cause  of  education?  But  while  this  hint 
was  not  acted  on,  his  general  religious  attitude  became  rooted  in  the  con- 
sciousness of  the  institution. 

Under  any  circumstances,  in  its  past  history  the  University  of  Virginia 
could  never  have  been  anti-Christian  or  even  non-Christian,  It  was  essen- 
tially Virginian  and  Virginia  has  been  a  Christian  commonwealth.  Indeed 
the  whole  Southern  people  were  practically  a  Christian  people  and  out  of 
Christian  homes  and  Christian  churches  came  the  men  who  thronged  its 
halls.  But  be  it  repeated  once  again,  from  the  beginning  there  was  no 
attempt  to  discourage  religion,  but  only  to  make  it  free.    In  this  respect  the 


8  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

earliest  wishes  have  been  reaHzed.  Throughout  the  whole  history  of  the 
religious  activities  of  the  University  of  Virginia  they  have  been  a  free-will 
service. 

The  earliest  devotional  exercises  of  which  we  hear  are  the  prayer-meet- 
ings that  were  held  in  the  various  pavilions  of  the  faculty.  The  University 
was  formally  opened  in  1825  and  these  prayer-meetings  must  have  been 
inaugurated,  if  not  at  the  opening,  at  least  in  no  very  long  time  thereafter. 
But  the  matter  of  regular  religious  services  at  the  University  became  a 
growing  concern  with  the  members  of  the  faculty  and  three  years  after  the 
formal  opening,  that  is  to  say  in  1828,  they  made  an  appeal,  not  as  an  or- 
ganized body  but  as  individuals,  to  the  pastors  of  the  several  churches  in 
Charlottesville.  The  latter  consented  to  arrange  a  system  of  weekly  services 
and  accordingly,  in  the  same  room  in  the  rotunda  that  was  used  for  lectures 
in  law,  mathematics  and  languages,  these  pastors,  so  far  as  we  know,  faith- 
fully fulfilled  their  agreement  as  best  they  could  with  very  inadequate 
provision. 

As  time  went  on,  however,  those  most  interested  felt  that  the  system 
was  inadequate  to  the  needs  of  the  institution  and  determined  upon  the 
voluntary  support  of  a  chaplain  who  should  give  all  his  time  and  strength 
to  a  University  ministry.  He  was  called  for  a  period  of  one  year  when  he 
was  obliged  to  give  place  to  a  representative  of  a  denomination  other  than 
his  own.  Up  to  the  year  1837  they  continued  to  use  the  same  room  in  the 
Rotunda,  But  in  that  year,  upon  the  vote  of  those  interested,  one  of  the 
professors  drew  up  a  petition  which  set  forth  not  only  the  desirability  of  a 
building  suitable  for  religious  purposes,  but  also  declared  that  this  poorly 
equipped  room  could  accommodate  not  more  than  half  of  the  student  body. 
For  some  reason  this  petition  failed  of  presentation  to  the  Board,  but  it  is 
supposed  that  its  contents  became  known.  At  all  events  during  that  year 
the  south-east  room  of  the  Rotunda  was  converted  into  a  chapel. 

From  the  year  1833  to  that  of  1848  chaplains  continued  to  serve  each 
for  a  single  year.  They  were  carefully  taken  in  order  from  the  four  de- 
nominations of  the  State,  that  is  to  say  from  the  Baptist,  Methodist,  Pres- 
byterian and  Episcopal.  In  the  latter  year  the  term  of  service  was  made 
two  years  instead  of  one.  So  these  four  churches  supplied  the  chaplains  in 
order  down  to  the  year  1896.  In  the  fall  of  that  year  the  chaplain-elect 
conducted  one  service  which  proved  his  last  as  well  as  his  first :  he  was  over- 
taken by  death  in  the  following  week.  This  unexpected  issue  was  the 
occasion  for  discontinuing  the  old  system.  In  that  year  it  was  abandoned 
for  another. 

When  one  considers  what  must  have  been  an  inherent  difficulty  in  find- 
ing good  men  who  were  willing  to  fall  out  of  line  in  their  own  churches  to 
accept  the  chaplaincy  for  so  short  a  term,  it  is  surprising  that  the  system 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  9 

yielded  results  so  satisfactory  through  the  long  period  of  sixty-three  years. 
Few  mistakes  appear  to  have  been  made  and  these  not  of  great  moment. 
On  the  whole  they  formed  a  long  line  of  intelligent  and  consecrated  men  and 
in  not  a  few  instances  their  high  character  and  gracious  influence  abide  to 
this  day  as  a  delightful  tradition  in  the  life  of  the  University.  For  many 
years  the  beautiful  church  on  the  lawn,  erected  by  voluntary  contributions, 
has  stood  as  a  monument  to  the  service  of  the  chaplains  and  the  free-will 
method  of  religious  endeavor  in  this  institution  of  learning. 

But  the  history  of  the  progress  of  religious  worship  in  this  university 
cannot  be  appreciated  without  reference  to  a  particular  movement  which 
had  its  rise  as  early  as  1858.  I  refer  to  the  organization  of  a  branch  of  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association. 

That  was  a  year  in  which  the  religious  feeling  was  greatly  quickened 
among  Christian  communities  over  the  world.  This  had  extended  to  the 
churches  in  Charlottesville  and  had  been  much  felt  among  the  students  of 
the  University.  Previous  to  this  epoch  there  had  existed  an  organization 
among  the  students  known  as  the  "Society  of  Missionary  Inquiry."  The 
avowed  aim  of  this  society  was  not  only  the  cultivation  of  the  Christian 
graces  in  its  members,  but  also  the  furtherance  of  genuine  missionary  activ- 
ity. So  for  a  number  of  years  prior  to  the  formation  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association,  student  prayer-meetings,  initiated  and  maintained 
through  their  own  efforts,  were  held  regularly  on  Sunday  afternoons:  a 
Sunday  school  for  white  children  and  one  for  negroes  were  kept  up  in  the 
college  buildings  and  the  students  went  out  into  the  Ragged  Mountains,  to 
the  county  Poorhouse  and  other  places  to  conduct  Sunday  schools  and  teach 
religion  as  occasion  might  offer.  The  society  under  which  these  activities 
went  forward,  rather  seemed  to  regard  itself  as  a  branch  of  the  work  of  the 
college  chaplain,  feeling  responsible  to  him  as  its  head  and  looking  to  him 
for  approval. 

But  for  a  considerable  time  it  had  been  felt  that  the  various  religious 
activities  might  be  better  coordinated  and  the  avenues  for  usefulness  mul- 
tiplied by  the  organization  of  a  college  branch  of  that  fellowship  among 
young  men  which  was  already  becoming  well  known  in  the  life  of  many  of 
the  larger  cities  of  England  and  America.  It  was  in  the  early  summer  of 
1858  that  several  meetings  were  held  with  this  interest  in  view  and  in  the 
opening  of  the  ensuing  college  year,  the  first  college  branch  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  was  launched.  That  it  was  indeed  the  first 
has,  I  think,  been  conclusively  shown  in  the  paper  of  Dr.  Hugh  Mcllhany 
on  the  subject  which  was  published  some  years  ago.  In  the  case  of  the  rival 
claim  it  was  found  that  the  society  in  question  became  a  part  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  only  in  recent  years.  For  many  years  it  was 
but  a  college  religious  society  such  as  existed  in  numerous  institutions.    But 


10  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

at  this  place  it  was  formally  determined  to  take  the  first  step  in  this  direction. 
The  constitutions  of  the  Associations  of  London  and  Boston  were  secured 
and  with  them  as  models  the  constitution  of  this  branch  was  carefully  drawn. 
The  object  of  the  Association,  as  stated  in  this  constitution,  was  "the 
improvement  of  the  spiritual  condition  of  the  students  and  the  securing  of 
religious  advantages  to  the  destitute  points  in  the  neighborhood  of  the 
University."  Its  organization  seemed  to  prove  effective  from  the  first.  It 
provided  for  a  "standing  committee,"  consisting  of  twenty  members  at 
the  least.  These  were  selected  from  the  various  boarding  houses  of  the 
University  and,  in  the  words  used  by  the  Association  itself,  they  were  ex- 
pected to  "exert  themselves  to  interest  their  respective  districts  in  the 
objects  of  the  Association  and  labor  to  induce  all  suitable  young  men  to 
connect  themselves  with  it ;  to  endeavor  to  bring  their  fellow  students  under 
moral  and  religious  influences  by  securing  their  attendance  at  prayer  meet- 
ings, and  also  to  take  in  charge  all  contributions  for  benevolent  objects." 

The  early  history  of  the  Association  shows  remarkable  prosperity.  In 
no  long  time  the  attendance  upon  the  religious  exercises  had  increased  to  a 
wonderful  degree  and  each  Sunday  found  as  many  as  fifty  young  men 
actively  engaged  in  the  Sunday  schools  round  about  or  in  missionary  work 
in  the  surrounding  country.  For  the  first  two  years  its  enrollment  was  large 
and  in  these  early  days  it  opened  a  library  for  general  use.  From  the  first 
it  commanded  the  adherence  of  students  whose  character  and  ability  gave 
them  influence  in  the  University  community.  Very  soon  after  its  organiza- 
tion its  career  was  sorely  disheveled  by  the  shock  of  the  Civil  War.  During 
those  awful  years  the  fires  at  the  Institution  almost  went  out.  But  through 
them  all  the  flame  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  though  flicker- 
ing, continued  to  burn,  and  when  the  halls  of  the  University  filled  up  again, 
it  was  ready  to  renew  its  life  in  the  various  activities  it  had  originally  under- 
taken. Through  many  years  it  held  on  its  course  and  influenced  for  good 
the  young  lives  that  were  touched  by  it.  Naturally  as  to  its  position  and 
influence  amid  the  changing  scenes  of  university  life,  it  met  with  vicissitudes. 
But  eventually,  in  the  providence  of  God,  the  evolution  of  circumstances 
placed  it  upon  a  permanent  base  and  gave  to  it  a  commanding  eminence. 

The  voluntary  system  of  worship,  with  its  chaplains  in  residence,  had 
resulted  in  the  erection  on  the  grounds  of  a  church  building  between  the 
years  1883  and  1885.  After  the  building  of  this  chapel  the  same  system 
continued  in  force  up  to  the  year  1896.  We  have  seen  that  in  that  year  the 
chaplain  who  had  just  been  elected  and  was  beginning  his  term,  suddenly 
died.  As  this  event  left  no  chaplain  either  in  fact  or  in  prospect,  the  thought 
of  those  in  authority  recurred  easily  to  a  subject  which  had  been  under  con- 
sideration at  various  times,  and  it  was  finally  determined  to  follow  the 
example  of  many  other  institutions  by  calling  a  young  man  to  be  Secretary 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  n 

of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  and  at  the  same  time  to  act  as  a 
sort  of  college  pastor  and  to  arrange  for  Sunday  chapel  services  by  clergymen 
invited  from  a  distance. 

In  the  fall  of  1900  was  begun  the  practice  of  keeping  the  visiting  clergy- 
men in  residence  for  the  period  of  a  month  instead  of  a  single  Sunday.  I 
recall  that  it  was  my  privilege  to  inaugurate  this  experiment  in  spending 
here  the  opening  month  of  that  session.  Two  services  were  held  each 
Sunday  in  the  chapel  and,  in  the  same  place  we  had  prayers  every  afternoon 
in  the  week  at  five  o'clock.  During  the  week  I  had  the  opportunity  of  min- 
gling familiarly  with  faculty  and  students.  As  I  look  back  through  the  years 
I  am  conscious  that  among  the  large  number  of  happy  visits  made  to  this 
greatly  loved  spot,  the  memory  of  none  is  more  tenderly  cherished  than  of 
this  one  to  which  I  advert.  I  believe,  however,  that  the  difficulty  encoun- 
tered in  finding  men  who  could  arrange  their  affairs  so  as  to  make  so  pro- 
tracted a  stay  was  very  great  and  the  undertaking  did  not  long  survive. 

In  1896,  then,  instead  of  securing  a  chaplain  to  replace  the  one  who  had 
died,  the  first  General  Secretary  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association 
was  called.  From  this  period  the  organization  entered  upon  a  more  vigorous 
life  than  it  had  ever  known  and  assumed  a  new  position  of  influence  among 
the  students  of  the  University. 

In  1902  the  late  Dr.  Hugh  Mcllhany  was  traveUing  Secretary  for  the 
International  Committee  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association.  He 
became  much  interested  in  the  University  Branch,  conceiving  that  it  occu- 
pied a  position  of  peculiar  importance.  The  subject  of  a  concentrated  and 
sustained  effort  to  provide  a  suitable  and  worthy  building  had  already  been 
broached  and,  a  vacancy  occurring  at  this  time  in  the  office  of  local  Secre- 
tary, he  was  glad  to  accept  the  position  and  entered  upon  a  period  of  five 
years  of  fine  and  fruitful  service.  Several  acres  of  favorably  situated  land 
had  already  been  secured  for  this  purpose.  Through  the  persistent  effort  of 
the  new  Secretary  in  availing  himself  of  the  influence  of  persons  prominent 
in  the  operations  of  college  associations,  in  no  very  long  time  Madison  Hall 
arose,  beautiful  to  the  eye  and  invaluable  for  its  end.  This  building  was  the 
gift  of  Mrs.  WilHam  E.  Dodge,  of  New  York.  It  was  dedicated  on  October 
18,  1905,  on  which  occasion  the  invocation  and  benediction  were  offered  by 
men  who  were  of  the  founders  of  the  Association  in  1858.  Nothing  in  the 
construction  and  equipment  of  this  building  was  left  undone  that  could 
contribute  to  its  efficiency  in  serving  the  purposes  it  was  designed  to  fulfill. 
It  was  opened  with  a  library  of  one  thousand  well-selected  volumes. 

As  was  expected,  this  building  became  at  once  the  religious  head- 
quarters of  the  University  and  it  has  served  a  noble  purpose  during  the  years 
of  its  existence.  While  complaint  may  at  times  be  made  that  the  growing 
power  and  position  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  have  inter- 


12  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

fered  with  the  reHgious  activity  connected  with  the  chapel,  yet  we  fancy  no 
one  would  care  to  reestablish  that  activity  if  the  price  demanded  were  the 
lessening  of  the  efficiency  of  the  work  represented  by  Madison  Hall. 

It  should  be  mentioned  in  passing  that  in  October,  1908,  the  fiftieth 
anniversary  of  the  creation  of  the  University  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation was  impressively  celebrated.  Thirty  of  the  original  members  still 
survived  in  that  year  and  nine  of  them  were  able  to  be  present  and  partici- 
pate in  the  ceremonies  of  the  occasion.  In  the  morning  a  sermon  was 
preached  on  the  benefits  of  cooperation  as  exemplified  in  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association,  and  following  the  sermon  an  historical  sketch  of  the 
Association  was  read.  At  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  a  service  of  song  was 
held  in  Madison  Hall  at  which  brief  addresses  were  made  by  various  repre- 
sentative persons.  In  the  same  place  in  the  evening  was  held  a  service 
reminiscent  in  its  character  at  which  addresses  were  made  and  letters  were 
read  from  old  members  who  were  unable  to  be  present.  On  Monday  morn- 
ing a  service  was  held  in  the  old  post-office  building  which  was  originally 
Temperance  Hall.  It  was  in  one  of  the  upper  rooms  of  this  building  that  the 
University  Branch  was  organized  in  1858.  And  here  was  photographed  a 
group  of  the  founders  in  attendance. 

But  no  survey  of  the  history  of  religious  influence  at  the  University 
would  be  adequate  without  attention  to  one  of  the  most  significant  of  its 
movements :  a  movement  which  resulted  in  the  establishment  of  a  school  of 
Biblical  Literature  as  a  constituent  part  of  the  institution. 

As  far  back  as  the  year  1892  a  missionary  board  of  one  of  our  denomina- 
tions began  the  execution  of  an  idea  with  which  it  had  been  for  some  time 
concerned.  It  provided  funds  to  sustain  a  so-called  "Bible  Lectureship"  at 
the  University  of  Michigan.  This  was  in  pursuance  of  the  purpose  of  es- 
tablishing such  lectureships  at  state  universities  in  general.  Unless  I  am 
mistaken  only  four  of  these  came  into  existence  and,  in  order  of  time,  the 
University  of  Virginia  was  second.  This  lectureship  simply  threw  a  com- 
petent Bible  instructor  into  the  institution  to  go  at  his  own  charges  and  find 
subjects  for  tuition  as  best  he  could.  It  could  do  no  more.  State  universi- 
ties not  only  declined  to  make  any  provision  for  the  study  of  the  Bible,  but 
some  of  them  had  direct  legislation  against  it.  It  was  found  by  those  who 
had  the  work  in  hand  that  students  who  were  driven  from  day  to  day  with 
work  required  by  those  who  would  win  degrees,  had  to  be  extraordinarily 
earnest  if  they  were  to  choose  voluntary  study  no  matter  what  the  nature, 
where  it  would  require  regular  appointments  and  count  for  nothing  upon 
their  college  work.  However  it  may  have  been  at  other  places  where  the 
experiment  was  tried,  it  is  certain  that  the  results  of  the  lectureship  at  this 
university  were  not  such  as  to  encourage  the  lecturer  or  those  most  interested 
in  the  outcome  of  the  effort.    As  a  consequence  the  friends  of  the  movement, 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  13 

within  a  few  years,  fell  vigorously  to  work  to  transform  this  lectureship  into 
a  professor's  chair.  At  the  outset  and  on  its  face  this  enterprise  seemed 
almost  fantastic,  but  in  the  event,  through  the  generosity  of  friends  com- 
bined with  the  liberal  policy  of  the  Board  which  had  given  the  lectureship,  a 
fund  was  raised  for  the  endowment  of  this  chair.  In  1909  final  steps  were 
taken  to  make  it  one  of  the  regular  schools.  As  in  the  case  of  the  other 
schools,  its  work  is  elective,  but  like  them  also  this  work  is  accepted  in  the 
attainment  of  a  degree.  The  history  of  this  chair  has  been  one  of  growing 
prosperity  and  popularity.  Its  courses  are  open  to  graduates  as  well  as  those 
of  the  academic  schools  and,  as  the  incumbent  is  told  upon  his  induction 
that  it  is  desired  that  he  conduct,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association  or  otherwise,  Bible  classes  for  those  unable  to  take  the 
regular  work,  it  will  be  seen  that  every  facility  is  provided  for  those  who  wish 
to  study  the  Bible.  Indeed  if  a  student  wants  nothing  to  do  with  the  Bible 
it  may  be  said  that  he  is  obliged  to  go  a  long  way  around  in  order  to  avoid  it. 

May  it  not  be  said,  in  the  same  way,  that  throughout  the  whole  career 
of  this  university,  if  a  student  has  wanted  no  contact  with  religion,  he  has 
been  compelled  to  go  a  long  way  around  in  order  to  avoid  it.  For  to  the 
influence  of  those  activities  that  have  been  described  must  be  added  that  of 
the  many  members  of  the  faculty  who  have  been  shining  lights  in  their 
generation  and  have  made  these  walls  more  sacred  because  they  lived  and 
wrought  in  them.  Many  of  them  not  only  exhaled  the  atmosphere  of  a  life 
hid  with  Christ  in  God,  but  they  spoke  the  words  of  this  life  with  power. 
Across  the  years  there  come  to  us  the  voices  of  McGuffey  and  Cabell,  of 
Minor  and  the  Davises,  of  Kent  and  others  as  those  of  great  defenders  of  the 
truth  and  distinguished  preachers  of  righteousness. 

In  this  address  I  have  refrained  from  the  mention  of  individual  names 
excepting  where  they  were  virtually  necessary  to  the  story.  And  this 
because  I  felt  that  time  would  fail  me  to  tell  of  the  valiant  part  played  by 
the  many  heroes  of  our  history.  But  as  we  touch  the  subject  of  the  Christian 
influence  of  members  of  the  faculty,  I  may  be  permitted  to  speak  of  one  who 
as  student  and  teacher  has  been  with  his  Alma  Mater  through  the  greater 
part  of  her  history,  who  has  seen  generation  after  generation  as  they  came 
and  went  and  whose  presence  in  the  evening  of  life  continues  to  be  the  bene- 
diction it  has  always  been.  None  who  has  been  associated  for  long  with  the 
University  but  has  been  glad  that  it  was  given  him  to  know  Dr.  Francis 
Smith, 

A  tree  is  known  by  its  fruit  and  we  believe  that  in  their  attitude  towards 
religion  the  alumni  of  the  University  of  Virginia  are  hardly  behind  those  of 
other  educational  institutions.  They  have  occupied  positions  of  eminence 
in  all  the  walks  of  life  and  frequently  have  been  as  marked  for  their  Christian 
allegiance  as  their  intellectual  ascendency.    Large  numbers  of  them,  more- 


14  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

over,  have  occupied  places  of  honor  and  leadership  in  the  various  branches 
of  the  Christian  ministry  and  have  gone  with  the  Gospel  to  all  the  corners  of 
the  globe.  From  China  and  Japan,  from  India  and  Africa  and  from  the 
islands  of  the  sea  rise  the  voices  of  devoted  men  and  true  who  hail  this  uni- 
versity as  their  Alma  Mater.  Truly  her  voice  is  everywhere  heard  and  her 
line  has  gone  out  into  all  the  world. 

Let  us  pray  for  her  prosperity  and  peace.  May  she  be  in  the  future,  as 
in  the  past,  a  city  set  on  a  hill.  May  she  so  command  the  devotion  of  her 
sons  that  her  efficiency  shall  be  greatly  increased.  Above  all,  by  God's  good 
grace  may  she  so  keep  her  gaze  fixed  upon  the  hills  from  whence  cometh  her 
help  that  in  the  future,  as  in  the  past,  there  may  issue  from  her  many  streams 
to  make  glad  the  city  of  God. 


A  PROPHECY  OF  AMERICA 
By  Henry  van  Dyke,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  D.C.L. 

And  their  nobles  shall  be  of  themselves,  and  their  Governor  shall  proceed 
from  the  midst  of  them.     Jer.  30:  21. 

This  prophecy  of  a  divine  charter  for  democracy  has  been  strikingly 
fulfilled  in  the  history  of  the  United  States  of  America.  Twenty-eight 
Presidents  have  led  the  republic,  all  good  men,  and  several  of  them  great 
men, — a  better  record  than  any  royal  house  can  show  for  the  same  period. 

This  proves  that  the  so-called  divine  authority  of  kings  is  certainly  not 
superior  to  the  providential  guidance  of  the  people's  choice  in  producing 
worthy  rulers.  Doubters  of  democracy,  take  note !  Popular  election  is  not 
an  infallible  method.  But  for  the  highest  office  it  works  better  than  the 
mechanism  of  princely  marriages. 

Another  thing  about  the  Presidents  of  the  United  States  is  significant 
and  not  generally  known.  Every  one  of  them,  with  a  single  exception,  has 
come  from  pre-revolutionary  American  stock, — those  plain  people  who 
crossed  the  ocean  when  a  voyage  meant  more  than  a  mild  adventure  in  sea- 
sickness, to  face  the  perils  of  a  vast  wilderness,  and  to  win  liberty  and 
living  for  themselves  and  their  children. 

This  proves  that  though  our  country  may  have  become  to  some  extent 
a  "melting-pot,"  the  American  hand  and  spirit  still  direct  the  process  of 
fusion.  So  may  it  be  until  by  common  education  and  united  work  the  last 
hyphen  is  melted  out,  and  a  mighty  people  emerges  owing  an  undivided 
allegiance  to  America  and  to  God ! 

Of  all  our  Presidents  not  one  was  more  emphatically  American  than 
Thomas  Jefferson.  He  has  been  called  the  "Father  of  Democracy."  He 
would  have  preferred,  I  think,  to  be  called  its  son.    Bom  of  its  blood  and 


o 


Q 


'   X  '■<  '■ 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  15 

nursed  upon  its  milk,  he  was  a  lover  and  a  leader,  a  truster  and  a  defender 
of  the  plain  people  of  his  land. 

True,  he  also  loved  France.  But  from  1776  to  192 1,  a  grateful  love  of 
France  has  been  one  of  the  qualities  of  real  Americanism. 

True,  he  was  an  educated  man,  familiar  with  the  philosophy  of  liberty, 
and  well-read  in  its  ancient  and  modern  literature.  But  it  was  not  from 
books  that  he  drew  his  faith.  It  was  from  the  soil  whence  he  sprang  and  the 
folks  among  whom  he  was  bred  and  brought  up.  Contact  with  them  en- 
lightened him,  convinced  him,  inspired  him.  He  knew  that  they  were  trust- 
worthy, fit  to  rule  themselves,  and  he  was  determined  that  they  should  do  so. 
For  their  liberties  he  was  willing  to  fight,  in  time  of  war,  against  foreign 
oppression.  For  their  rights  he  was  willing  to  contend  and  work  in  time  of 
peace,  against  domestic  oligarchy  and  the  domination  of  the  money  power. 

It  was  on  this  issue  that  he  came  to  the  presidential  chair,  and  for  this 
he  was  mistrusted  and  abused  by  those  who  were  not  liberal  enough  to 
understand  that,  in  a  free  country,  the  only  conservative  force  is  an  equal- 
handed  justice.  Popular  government;  no  class  privileges;  personal  liberty 
within  the  bounds  of  common  order;  home  rule  for  all  the  States,  not  sepa- 
rate but  indissolubly  united ;  a  nation  strong  by  virtue  of  the  strength  of  its 
component  parts ;  soimd  finance  instead  of  kiting ;  trade  not  stifled  by  arti- 
ficial barriers;  and  peace,  so  far  as  in  us  lies,  with  all  mankind, — these  were 
Jefferson's  ideas.  By  them  he  led  the  young  Republic  for  eight  years,  and 
gave  to  her  future  course  a  direction  which,  pray  God,  will  never  be  per- 
manently altered. 

He  was  an  idealist,  of  course.  All  our  great  Presidents  have  been  that, 
and  all  of  them  have  been  reproached  for  it.  But  somehow  or  other  these 
idealists,  men  of  the  tribe  of  that  dreamer  Joseph,  have  had  the  faculty  of 
making  many  of  their  dreams  come  true.  And  if  by  reason  of  the  jealousy 
of  their  brethren  they  do  not  realize  at  once  all  their  lofty  ideals,  they  have  at 
least  the  knowledge  that  heavenly  lights  have  shone  upon  them : 

'Tis  better  to  have  dreamed  and  lost 
Than  never  to  have  dreamed  at  all. 

Without  the  vision  the  people  perish.  Our  true  leaders  have  not  been  con- 
trolled by  narrow  considerations  of  self-interest,  but  by  the  loftier  view  of  a 
"People  guided  by  an  exalted  justice  and  benevolence, "  by  the  larger  hope 
of  "America  first, "  not  only  in  wealth  and  power,  but  also  in  the  councils 
of  the  nations  for  the  peace  of  the  world.  This  has  been  the  star  of  our 
Presidents  from  Washington  to  Wilson.  This  we  trust  will  be  the  leading 
light  of  our  present  honored  Chief  Magistrate. 

The  positive  and  practical  achievements  of  Thomas  Jefferson  are  not 


i6  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

always  remembered.  Careless  of  his  own  fortune  to  the  point  of  negligence, 
he  had  an  ideal  of  financial  integrity  and  solvency  for  his  country  by  virtue 
of  which  he  was  able  to  pay  off  thirty- three  million  dollars  of  public  debt, — 
a  sum  as  large  for  those  days  and  conditions  as  thirty-three  billion  would 
be  for  the  United  States  of  to-day.  He  had  a  vision  of  what  he  called  "an 
Empire  for  Liberty, "  and  by  the  peaceful  means  of  purchase  he  expanded 
our  national  territory  from  the  AUeghanies  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  from 
the  Great  Lakes  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  He  was  the  first  to  propose  a  League 
of  Nations  to  enforce  peace  in  the  Mediterranean,  and,  though  his  scheme 
did  not  go  through  as  planned,  he  was  also  the  first  to  send  an  American  fleet 
into  foreign  waters  to  put  down  the  pirates  of  North  Africa.  He  said  truly, 
"Peace  is  our  passion, "  and  therefore  he  was  willing  to  fight  in  its  defense. 
He  was  opposed  to  "entangling  alliances,"  because  he  wanted  something 
larger, — a  cooperation  of  all  nations  for  the  good  of  the  world  and  the 
progress  of  mankind. 

Such  were  the  ideals  and  aspirations  of  this  eager  and  enthusiastic  man. 
If  he  sometimes  made  mistakes  in  working  them  out,  that  was  only  human. 
It  is  better  to  be  sometimes  mistaken  than  to  be  all  the  time  dead. 

Let  us  turn  now  for  a  moment  to  consider  the  three  things  by  which  he 
desired  to  be  remembered :  that  he  wrote  the  Declaration  of  Independence, 
and  the  Statute  of  Virginia  for  Religious  Freedom,  and  that  he  was  the  Father 
of  the  University  of  Virginia. 

Mark  you,  these  are  in  a  way  very  simple  things.  They  are  not  glitter- 
ing political  or  military  victories ;  they  are  triumphs  in  the  realm  of  the  spirit ; 
they  are  pure  offerings  on  the  altar  of  Liberty. 

Mark  also,  and  mark  it  well,  they  are  not  disconnected  and  haphazard 
things.  They  are  closely  and  inevitably  woven  together  in  the  unity  of  the 
spirit  and  the  bond  of  peace.  They  are  made  of  one  stuff  and  dedicated  to 
one  purpose. 

The  Declaration  of  Independence  is  a  profoundly  religious  document ; 
a  gospel  of  human  rights  as  conferred  by  God,  and  therefore  inalienable,  and 
a  definition  of  human  government  as  deriving  its  divine  authority  from  the 
protection  of  those  God-given  rights. 

But  how  shall  men  understand  their  rights  and  learn  how  to  use  them 
wisely  in  harmony  with  the  rights  of  others,  unless  they  are  taught  to  see 
clearly,  to  reason  rightly,  and  to  will  nobly?  Popular  education  is  the  first 
and  greatest  need  of  a  republic.  Without  wisdom  and  discretion  the  sover- 
eign people  are  but  as  a  flock  of  sheep  or  a  drove  of  wild  asses.  Therefore 
he  that  supports  schools  and  establishes  colleges  is  a  strengthener  of  the 
foundations  of  democracy. 

But  that  will  not  be  so  if  education  is  controlled  and  dominated  by  ex- 
ternal authority,  by  the  enactments  of  political  senates  or  the  decrees  of 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  17 

ecclesiastical  councils.  The  mind  of  man  must  be  free  to  seek,  to  find,  to 
embrace  and  to  follow  the  truth,  by  observation  in  science,  by  reasoning  in 
philosophy  and  government,  and  by  conscience  in  religion.  There  is  no 
other  way,  nor  is  there  need  of  any  other.  An  opinion  enforced  is  a  foreign 
body  in  the  mind  and  never  becomes  part  of  it.  A  creed  imposed  is  a  treason 
to  faith,  a  mockery  of  piety,  and  an  offense  to  God.  He  has  seen  fit,  in  His 
great  school  of  life,  to  make  religion  an  optional  course  and  worship  a  volun- 
tary exercise.  Therefore  religious  liberty  is  essential  to  the  doctrine  of 
Christ,  who  said,  "if  any  man  will  come  after  me  let  him  deny  himself,  and 
take  up  his  cross,  and  follow  me."  Jesus  would  have  only  willing  disciples, 
and  to  them  He  promises,  "Ye  shall  know  the  truth  and  the  truth  shall 
make  you  free." 

My  brethren,  the  fundamental  convictions  of  Jefferson  are  in  harmony 
with  the  spirit  of  Christianity,  which  is  a  democracy  of  souls  under  the 
sovereignty  of  God  and  the  leadership  of  Christ.  In  these  latter  days  we 
have  special  need  to  revive  these  convictions  and  hold  them  fast,  for  the 
safety  of  the  republic  and  the  welfare  of  religion. 

Secret  and  dangerous  heresies  are  at  work  in  our  times.  We  are  in  peril 
of  forgetting  that  the  main  object  of  government  is  not  the  imposition  of 
national  uniformity,  but  the  protection  of  the  individual  in  his  rights  of  life, 
liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness.  We  are  in  peril  of  forgetting  the 
supreme  importance  of  common  education  in  a  democratic  state.  With  our 
lips  we  do  reverence  to  it,  but  in  our  deeds  we  are  apostates.  We  are  spend- 
ing more  for  fleets  and  armies  than  for  schools  and  colleges.  We  are  paying 
our  plumbers  and  carpenters  more  than  our  teachers.  We  are  blindly  allow- 
ing a  generation,  white  and  colored,  to  grow  up  on  our  land,  ten  per  cent,  of 
whom  can  neither  read  nor  write,  and  forty  per  cent,  of  whom  have  no  real 
conception  of  the  fundamental  rights  and  duties  of  freemen.  The  republic 
is  not  safe  under  such  conditions.  To  breed  ignorance  is  to  beget  disaster. 
We  must  reverse  our  course.  We  must  devote  more  of  our  wealth  and  effort 
to  the  education  of  our  people  than  to  any  other  national  purpose.  We  must 
cultivate  "preparedness  "  not  only  for  the  exceptional  emergency  of  war,  but 
also  and  more  resolutely  for  the  permanent  and  normal  demands  of  peace. 
We  must  build  our  national  defenses  in  the  character  and  intelligence  of  our 
young  manhood  and  womanhood.  The  pestilent  diseases  of  Bergdollism  and 
Brindellism  must  be  extirpated.  Not  only  our  schools  and  universities  but 
also  our  homes  must  be  places  of  training  for  the  serious  responsibilities  of 
American  citizenship.  Fathers  and  mothers,  as  well  as  teachers  must  take 
their  part  in  the  building  of  those  living,  spiritual  bulwarks  of  enlightenment 
and  patriotism  by  which  alone  our  country  can  be  safeguarded  from  the 
ruinous  revolts  of  ignorance,  the  bold  assaults  of  demagogues,  and  the  in- 
sidious usurpations  of  gilded  arrogance. 


1 8  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

And  what  of  religion,  that  sustaining  and  restraining  power,  that  sense 
of  a  personal  relationship  between  man  and  God  which  ennobles  every  daily 
duty  and  inspires  every  noble  sacrifice  ?  Never  has  our  country  needed  it, — 
pure,  potent,  undefiled, — more  than  she  needs  it  to-day.  Materialism, — 
wealth — worship  in  the  form  of  pride  or  in  the  form  of  envy, — ungodly 
devotion  to  the  things  that  perish  in  the  using  is  the  vice  of  the  age  and  the 
enemy  of  the  republic.     Without  religion  democracy  is  doomed. 

But  how  shall  we  revive  religion,  how  sustain  and  spread  it?  By 
authority  and  power,  by  pains  and  penalties  for  unbelief,  by  stricter  censor- 
ship of  opinions  and  conduct,  by  compulsory  worship  and  blue  law  Sundays? 
Nay,  beloved,  never  was  faith  fostered,  nor  church  prospered,  by  such 
means.  "Conscience  is  God's  province."  With  the  first  table  of  the  Ten 
Commandments  civil  government  has  nothing  to  do ;  only  with  the  second 
table  is  it  concerned.  What  man  does  to  his  fellowman  law  may  regulate; 
how  he  stands  with  God  is  his  own  affair.  Sunday  is  a  beautiful  park  where- 
in the  state  keeps  order  that  the  people  may  find  rest :  the  Sabbath  is  a  holy 
Temple  in  the  park,  wherein  those  who  will  may  enter  to  find  the  joy  of 
worship. 

My  friends,  what  we  need  is  not  less  devotion  to  Christianity,  but  more 
confidence  in  it.  It  is  not  a  weakling  demanding  shelter,  nourishment, 
propaganda  from  the  state.  It  is  a  vigorous,  God-reliant  religion,  manly  in 
its  strength,  womanly  in  its  tenderness,  sure  that  Christ  is  the  love  of  God 
and  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation.  It  was  born  in  the  open  air;  it  was 
taught  on  the  lake-shore  and  the  mountain-side ;  it  travelled  the  dusty  road 
on  foot  and  clasped  hands  with  every  seeker  after  God ;  its  supreme,  trium- 
phant sacrifice  was  offered  on  a  green  hill,  beneath  the  blue  sky,  among 
sinners  and  for  their  sake.  Get  back  to  that,  tell  men  that,  live  by  that,  and 
Christianity'  will  revive  to  bless  democracy  and  make  it  safe  for  the  world. 


THE  SECOND  DAY 

The  exercises  of  the  second  day  of  the  Centennial  consisted  of  the 
presentation  of  greetings  by  delegates  from  other  institutions,  the 
dedication  of  a  tablet  memorial  to  alumni  who  died  in  the  World  War, 
a  reception  to  delegates  and  other  guests  at  the  President's  House, 
and  the  acting  of  the  Pageant  in  the  Amphitheatre.  The  program 
of  events  on  this  day  follows,  with  the  text  of  all  the  formal  addresses 
except  those  by  the  Governor  of  Virginia  and  the  President  of  the 
University  of  Missouri,  the  manuscripts  of  which  were  not  furnished 
the  committee  by  the  speakers.  The  complete  text  of  the  Centennial 
Pageant  is  included.  The  greetings  from  a  few  universities  and 
scientific  societies  are  printed  or  reproduced  in  facsimile,  and  the 
official  list  of  delegates  actually  present  is  added. 

Wednesday,  June  ist 

11.00  A.M.  Reception  of  Delegates  and  Presentation  of  Greetings 
from  Institutions.    Cabell  Hall 

The  Order  oj  the  Procession,  Wednesday  Morning 

BAND 

I 

DELEGATES    FROM    INSTITUTIONS    IN    FOREIGN    COUNTRIES 
DELEGATES    FROM    INSTITUTIONS    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES 

II 

THE  PROFESSORS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  IN  REVERSE  ORDER 
OF  OFFICIAL  SENIORITY 
FORMER   PROFESSORS  OF   THE  UNIVERSITY 
19 


20 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 


III 

THE   ALUMNI   TRUSTEES  OF    THE   UNIVERSITY   OF   VIRGINIA 
ENDOWMENT  FUND 
THE   TRUSTEES   OF   THE   MILLER   FUND 
THE   VISITORS   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY   OF   VIRGINIA 
FORMER    VISITORS    OF    THE     UNIVERSITY    OF     VIRGINIA 
FORMER   RECTORS   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY 
THE   RECTOR   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY 
THE   governor's   MILITARY   STAFF 
THE    GOVERNOR    OF    THE    COMMONWEALTH    OF    VIRGINIA 
THE   PRESIDENT   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY 

The  Order  of  Exercises:  Cabell  Hall 

THE   HERALD 


Address  of  Welcome  : 


Response  ; 


Address  of  Welcome  :  The  Governor  of  the  Common- 
wealth of  Virginia,  the  Honor- 
able Westmoreland  Davis, 
'85,  LL.B. 

The  President  of  the  University 
of  Virginia,  Edwin  Anderson 
Alderman,  D.C.L.,  LL.D. 

The  President  of  the  College  of 
WilUam  and  Mary,  Julian 
Alvin  Carroll  Chandler, 
Ph.D.,  LL.D. 

The  President  of  the  University 
of  Missouri,  Albert  Ross 
Hill,  Ph.D.,  LL.D. 

The  President  of  Harvard  Uni- 
versity, Abbott  Lawrence 
Lowell,  LL.B.,  LL.D. 

His  Excellency  the  French  Am- 
bassador, Jules  Jusserand, 
LL.D. 

Mrs.  Charles  Hancock  at  the 
Organ 

Presentation  of  Greetings,  by  the  Delegates,  from 
Institutions  Represented 


Response  : 


Response  ; 


Response  : 


Largo  from  Serse 
(Handel) 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  21 

Recession 

3.00  P.M.  Ceremonies  by  the  Alimini  of  the  University  of  Virginia 
who  served  in  the  World  War,  in  dedication  of  a  Tablet 
memorial  to  their  comrades  who  died  in  Service.  South 
Front  of  the  Rotunda 

Master  of  Ceremonies 
Lieutenant-Colonel  John  Abram  Cutchins,  '03 

Invocation:         Chaplain  Beverley  Dandridge  Tuck- 
er, Jr.,  '02 

Presentation:    Captain   Alfred    Dickinson    Barks- 
dale,  '15 

Unveiling:  Miss    Bobbie    Conrad,    daughter    of 

Captain  Robert  Young  Conrad, 
'10,  who  was  killed  in  action,  France, 
October  12,  191 8 
Miss  Sallie  Merrick  Kite,  daughter 
of  Sergeant  Charles  Clement  Kite, 
'07,  who  was  killed  at  Chdteau- 
Thierry,  June  26,  191 8 

Acceptance:        John  Stewart  Bryan,  '95,  Rector  of 
the  University  of  Virginia 

Address:  Gabriel  Hanotaux,  Commandeur  de 

la  Legion  d'Honneur 

5/06  p.m.  Reception  to  Delegates  and  Invited  Guests  by  President 
and  Mrs.  Alderman.     The  President's  House 

8.30  p.m.  "The  Shadow  of  the  Builder."    A  Pageant  presented  in 
the  Amphitheatre 


ADDRESSES  ON  THE  SECOND  DAY 
address  of  welcome  to  the  university 

By  Pkesident  Alderman 

Governor  Davis  has  welcomed  you  to  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia. 
I  shall  not  seek  or  hope  to  add  to  the  graciousness  of  that  welcome,  but  I 
may  venture  to  focus  its  friendliness  upon  this  particular  spot  in  the  Com- 


22  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

monwealth — this  University  which  here  to-day  inaugurates  this  celebration 
of  remembrance  and  hope  in  commemoration  of  the  One  Hundredth  Anni- 
versary of  its  birth,  and  which  I  take  leave  to  describe  as  the  highest  intellec- 
tual achievement  of  an  old  and  distinguished  American  state.  It  was 
founded  by  a  lover  of  human  freedom  whose  political  philosophy  was  based 
upon  absolute  faith  in  the  ultimate  wisdom  and  integrity  of  trained  men. 
Guided  by  sincere  scholars  who  held  that  faith  in  their  thinking  and  lived  it 
in  their  lives,  stamped  with  opulent  beauty  of  form  and  girt  about  with  fair 
landscapes  and  encircling  hills,  it  has  been  at  work  during  one  century,  dis- 
tinguished above  all  other  centuries,  perhaps,  for  its  fruitful  pursuit  of 
justice  in  society  and  truth  in  science.  In  peace  and  in  war,  amid  all  the 
vicissitudes  that  beset  free  men  threading  their  way  to  higher  destinies,  here 
it  has  stood  a  steadfast  thing  of  force  and  dignity  striving  to  augment  the 
forces  of  natiu-e  and  to  ally  them  to  the  uses  of  mankind,  to  mix  beauty  with 
strength  in  the  framework  of  democracy,  and  to  establish  in  the  life  of  the 
great  republican  experiment  enduring  standards  of  personal  integrity  and 
pubHc  virtue.  What  contributions  it  has  precisely  made  to  American  civiliza- 
tion belong  to  the  educational  history  of  the  nation,  and  these  have  been 
recently  set  forth  with  sympathetic  skill  and  faithful  accuracy  by  a  dis- 
tinguished son  of  this  University.  We  have  yielded  to  this  very  human 
impulse,  characteristic  of  institutions  as  well  as  of  men,  to  mark  a  milestone 
in  an  endless  career,  not  primarily  to  recite  the  glories  of  the  past  but  to 
envisage  the  responsibilities  of  the  future.  We  recognize  in  this  air  the 
ethical  binding  force  of  that  reverence  for  the  past  without  which  there  can 
be  no  true  continuity  in  human  institutions.  We  believe  indeed  that  all 
healthy  growth  somehow  proceeds  out  of  the  tissues  of  ancient  strength, 
but  our  enthusiasm  is  for  the  future  and  our  vision  is  a  vision  of  potential 
youth  of  this  and  other  ages  pressing  forward  to  carry  on  the  work  of  an  ever 
better  world. 

In  behalf  of  the  Governing  Bodies  and  Faculties  of  the  University  of 
Virginia,  I ,  therefore,  welcome  you  to  this  birthday  festival :  Delegates  of  Uni- 
versities and  Colleges,  representatives  of  Learned  Societies  and  Foundations 
in  this  and  other  lands,  guests  of  the  University,  and  in  a  way  of  peculiar 
affection,  sons  of  this  mature  and  vigorous  mother,  those  whom  the  years 
have  whitened,  those  who  bear  the  work  of  the  world  in  the  middle  period, 
and  these  young  scions  who  climb  about  the  knees  of  Alma  Mater  in  love 
and  gaiety.  I  am  aware  that  thousands  of  miles  and  centuries  separate 
you  in  space  and  time.  Institutions  are  represented  here  to-day  which  were 
venerable  when  our  continent  lay  unknown  in  these  western  seas,  while 
others  have  sprung  into  life  in  answer  to  the  cry  of  democratic  need  in  the 
last  decade;  but,  nevertheless,  it  is  as  a  homogeneous  family  that  I  welcome 
you — a  brotherhood  of  cultural  force  and  endeavor,  a  fellowship  of  scholars, 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  23 

blood  kin  in  intellect  and  purpose,  holding  the  promise  of  the  future  as  they 
have  yielded  the  fruit  of  the  past.  Whatever  we  have  to  offer  of  personal 
affection  and  esteem,  of  historic  significance,  of  memories  of  old  eager 
teachers  who  showed  to  by-gone  generations  "the  high,  white  star  of  truth," 
of  present  hope  and  intent,  is  yours,  my  colleagues. 

We  who  now  serve  these  Virginia  altars  are  heartened  by  your  presence 
and  sympathy,  enlightened  by  your  counsel  and  stimulated  by  your  example. 
Standing  upon  the  lintels  of  a  new  age,  the  University  of  Virginia  is  as  of 
old  still  glad  to  learn  and  glad  to  teach.  Like  Ajax  praying  for  light  to  see 
his  foeman's  face  on  the  darkness  of  the  Trojan  plain,  we  humbly  ask 
Almighty  God  for  strength  and  opportunity  to  face  whatever  is  before  us 
with  enlightened  minds,  organized  wills,  and  uplifted  hearts. 

RESPONSE  BY  PRESIDENT  CHANDLER  OF  THE  COLLEGE  OF  WILLIAM  AND  MARY 

Friends  of  the  University  of  Virginia: 

We  are  deeply  grateful  to  His  Excellency,  the  Governor  of  Virginia,  and 
to  the  President  of  this  University  for  their  eloquent  words  of  welcome.  We 
thank  them  sincerely  for  giving  us  the  opportunity  to  be  present  at  this 
renowned  institution  as  participants  in  this  history -making  celebration.  On 
this  centennial  occasion  it  is  a  privilege  to  speak  for  the  colleges  of  Virginia. 
We  rejoice  that  our  University,  through  a  hundred  years  of  activity,  has 
contributed  so  much  to  the  educational  development  of  the  State,  and  has 
furnished  so  many  leaders  to  Virginia  and  the  United  States.  We  are  deeply 
grateful  that  its  centenary  does  not  mark  old  age  and  a  decline,  but  a  ripen- 
ing into  vigorous  youth,  giving  promise  of  a  period  of  more  useful  activity 
and  of  wise  promotion  of  education  in  many  fields.  No  words  of  mine  can 
depict  the  deep  sense  of  pride  that  we  have  in  this  institution. 

On  such  an  occasion  one  can  but  think  of  educational  conditions  before 
the  founding  of  the  University.  At  the  opening  of  the  Revolution  there  was 
but  one  institution  of  higher  learning  in  Virginia,  the  College  of  William  and 
Mary,  then  nearly  one  hundred  years  old.  But  with  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  an  impetus  was  given  to  higher  learning,  for  it  was  generally 
thought  that  in  a  Republic  all  men  participating  in  its  affairs  should  be 
trained  for  the  performance  of  their  rights  as  citizens.  The  further  desire  to 
prepare  men  for  service  to  the  church  and  to  society  in  general,  resulted  in 
the  beginnings  of  Hampden-Sidney  in  Prince  Edward  County,  and  Liberty 
Hall  at  Lexington,  later  Washington  College,  and  still  later  Washington 
and  Lee  University.  These  three  institutions,  William  and  Mary,  Hampden- 
Sidney,  and  Washington  and  Lee  are  the  only  Virginia  institutions  of  college 
grade  antedating  the  University  of  Virginia. 

George  Washington  had  dreams  of  a  national  university,  and  in  his  will 


24  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

he  bequeathed  fifty  shares  of  stock  in  the  Potomac  Company  for  the  endow- 
ment of  a  university  to  be  established  within  the  District  of  Columbia.  To 
Washington  College,  he  likewise  made  a  gift  of  stock  with  the  hope  that  at 
Lexington  would  be  maintained  an  institution  which  would  prepare  young 
men  for  the  national  university.  Washington's  idea  of  a  university  was  a 
national  school  of  politics  and  administration.  According  to  Herbert  B. 
Adams,  "It  was  an  idea  born  of  the  old  College  of  William  and  Mary,  where 
capitol  and  college  faced  each  other,  and  where  the  statesmen  of  Virginia  had 
been  trained  for  their  great  work  of  liberating  the  colonies  and  of  framing  the 
Federal  Constitution.  The  idea  of  a  national  university  grew  in  Washing- 
ton's mind  with  his  own  official  connection  as  Chancellor  of  William  and 
Mary." 

Before  Washington  became  an  advocate  of  a  national  university, 
another  great  Virginian  was  urging  the  establishment  of  a  university  for  his 
own  State,  "although  there  was  nothing  provincial  in  his  advocacy."  He 
conceived  of  a  university  separated  from  politics  and  located  in  a  small  town 
where  young  men  would  not  be  subjected  to  many  temptations — an  institu- 
tion around  which  there  would  cling  something  of  a  monastic  spirit — a 
university  bearing  marks  of  an  educational  system  found  at  Geneva  and  at 
Oxford  and  Cambridge.  This  great  Virginian  was  Thomas  Jefferson,  who  is 
justly  entitled  to  be  called  the  "father  of  the  University  of  Virginia." 

This  University,  to  quote  again  Herbert  B.  Adams,  "is  clearly  the 
lengthened  shadow  of  one  man.  But  William  and  Mary  College  was  the 
Alma  Mater  of  Thomas  Jefferson.  There  at  Williamsburg,  in  intimate 
association  with  a  Scotch  professor  of  mathematics  and  philosophy,  with  a 
scholarly  lawyer  (George  Wythe)  and  with  the  Governor  of  the  Colony, 
Thomas  Jefferson  received  his  first  bent  towards  science  and  higher  educa- 
tion, towards  law  and  politics — the  fields  in  which  he  afterwards  excelled. 
Jefferson's  first  idea  of  a  university  for  Virginia  is  inseparably  connected 
with  his  proposed  transformation  of  William  and  Mary  College,  of  which,  as 
Governor  of  the  State,  he  became  ex  officio  a  visitor  in  1779." 

I  wish  it  were  possible  at  this  time  to  review  the  full  significance  of  the 
year  1779  in  the  educational  history  of  America.  Speaking  briefly,  in  this 
year,  the  College  of  William  and  Mary  took  the  name  of  university,  estab- 
lished the  honor  and  elective  systems,  introduced  the  teaching  of  modern 
languages,  and  established  a  school  of  law  and  a  school  of  medicine.  These 
steps  in  American  education,  introduced  through  the  influence  of  Jefferson 
and  the  two  Madisons,  have  revolutionized  higher  education  in  America. 
However,  Jefferson's  bill  of  1779,  in  favor  of  transforming  William  and 
Mary  into  the  University  of  Virginia,  failed  of  passage  because  William  and 
Mary  had  been  the  college  of  the  established  church  and  the  various  de- 
nominations represented  in  the  Virginia  Legislature  would  not  vote  public 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  25 

money  for  such  an  ' '  establishment ,  however  noble  and  worthy .  Non-sectari- 
anism was  one  of  the  deepest  foundations  in  the  political  establishment  of 
higher  education  in  Virginia. ' '  It  was  much  easier,  therefore,  for  Mr.  Jeffer- 
son and  his  friends  to  establish  a  new  institution. 

In  a  letter  of  1 8 14  to  Peter  Carr,  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
Albemarle  Academy,  Jefferson  wrote:  "I  have  long  entertained  the  hope 
that  this,  our  native  State,  would  take  up  the  subject  of  education,  and 
make  an  establishment,  either  with  or  without  incorporation,  into  that  of 
William  and  Mary,  where  every  branch  of  science  deemed  useful  at  this  date 
should  be  taught  in  its  highest  degree. ' '  In  this  letter  Mr.  Jefferson  outlines 
a  plan  for  the  elementary  schools  preparatory  to  the  "general"  schools, 
which  in  turn  should  prepare  for  the  professional  schools,  incorporated  in 
the  university. 

In  1817  a  bill  barely  failed  in  the  General  Assembly  to  establish  a  com- 
plete system  of  primary  schools,  academies,  colleges,  and  a  university.  This 
bill  proposed  that  the  trustees  or  visitors  of  the  then  existing  colleges  of 
William  and  Mary,  Hampden-Sidney,  and  Washington  should  be  invited 
to  become  a  part  of  this  system. 

Jefferson's  conception  of  a  University  of  Virginia  was  a  place  where  all 
branches  of  useful  sciences  could  be  taught  and  where  men  could  be  trained 
for  the  professions.  He  said:  "To  these  professional  schools  will  come  the 
lawyer  to  the  school  of  law ;  the  ecclesiastic  to  that  of  theology  and  ecclesias- 
tical history;  the  physician  to  those  of  the  practice  of  medicine,  materia 
medica,  pharmacy,  and  surgery;  the  military  man  to  that  of  military  and 
naval  architecture  and  projectiles;  the  agricultor  to  that  of  rural  economy; 
the  gentleman,  the  architect,  the  pleasure  gardener,  the  painter,  and  the 
musician  to  the  school  of  fine  arts."  He  also  favored  a  school  of  technical 
philosophy  and  said:  "To  such  a  school  will  come  the  mariner,  carpenter, 
shipwright,  pump-maker,  clock-maker,  mechanist,  optician,  metallurgist, 
founder,  cutler,  druggist,  brewer,  vintner,  distiller,  dyer,  painter,  bleacher, 
soap-maker,  tanner,  powder-maker,  salt-maker,  glass-maker,  to  learn  as 
much  as  shall  be  necessary  to  pursue  their  art  understandingly,  of  the 
sciences  of  geometry,  mechanics,  statics,  hydrostatics,  hydraulics,  hydro- 
dynamics, navigation,  astronomy,  geography,  optics,  pneumatics,  acous- 
tics, physics,  chemistry,  natural  history,  botany,  mineralogy,  and 
pharmacy." 

It  was  not  intended  that  this  university  should  be  a  school  of  aristocracy 
but  a  seminary  of  learning  to  which  men  preparing  for  all  professions  or 
vocations  would  come.  The  marvel  is  the  vision  of  the  great  master  mind. 
Founded  on  so  broad  a  conception,  the  University  may  be  expanded  as  the 
needs  of  the  people  demand  and  as  oiu*  civilization  changes. 

Speaking  for  my  own  college  and  the  other  Virginia  institutions  of 


26  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

higher  learning — state,  private,  and  denominational — we  exult  in  the 
original  conception  of  the  founder  of  this  University,  a  conception  looking  to 
instruction  in  all  fields  of  useful  knowledge,  and  we  pledge  to  the  University 
our  assistance  in  the  promotion  of  education  for  the  State. 

The  raison  d'etre  of  a  State  university  was  well  expressed  by  President 
Burton  in  his  inaugural  address  when  he  said,  "The  function  of  the  State 
university  is  to  serve  the  State  and  through  the  State  to  serve  the  nation  and 
the  world."     Through  the  hundred  years  of  its  life  the  University  of  Vir- 
ginia has  clearly  demonstrated  that  this  ideal  is  the  goal  of  its  ambition. 
Its  usefulness  is  being  expanded  daily  by  its  recognition  that  much  of 
college  work  in  the  State  should  be  done  by  institutions  already  chartered 
and  giving  standard  degrees.    This  does  not  mean  that  the  University  should 
discontinue  its  college  work  but  should  insist,  as  it  does,  upon  higher  stand- 
ards both  for  entrance  and  graduation.     The  sister  institutions  are  further 
gratified  that  the  University  is  holding  firmly  to  Jefferson's  desire  to  estab- 
lish a  correlation  between  the  University  and  colleges  of  such  a  character 
that  the  colleges  will  become  "feeders"  to  the  University.     This  ideal  is 
vital  to  all,  but  it  calls  for  strenuous  efforts  to  develop  extensively  the  gradu- 
ate departments  of  the  University.     The  growth  of  the  University  is  of 
paramount  importance  to  the  State  and  such  plans  as  look  to  the  ex- 
pansion of  the  schools  of  engineering,  education,  business  administration, 
law,  and  medicine ;  to  the  establishment  of  a  bureau  or  bureaus  of  investiga- 
tion and  research,  and  to  extension  courses  within  reach  of  the  people  in 
various  parts  of  the  State,  are  gratifying  evidences  of  the  broadening  in- 
fluence of  this  institution  of  which  we  are  so  justly  proud.    We  know  that 
all  these  movements  demand  large  expenditures  for  equipment  and  for  per- 
sonnel, but  we  believe  that  the  people  of  Virginia  are  ready  to  be  taxed  for 
all  progressive  proposals  on  the  part  of  its  University. 

Mr.  President,  coming  from  an  institution  that  is  the  Alma  Mater  of 
the  founder  of  the  University,  and  speaking  for  it,  speaking  for  Washington 
and  Lee  University  which  owes,  to  a  certain  extent,  its  development  to  the 
gift  from  the  great  Washington,  speaking  for  the  ancient  college  of  Hampden - 
Sidney  and  for  the  State  institutions  and  the  other  institutions  of  higher 
learning,  which  have  been  established  since  the  University  of  Virginia,  I 
bring  on  this  joyful  anniversary  greetings  and  expressions  of  grateful  appre- 
ciation of  the  wonderful  influence  upon  learning  that  this  institution  has 
exerted  in  the  State  and  nation.  We  realize  that  this  University  has  in 
many  ways  ministered  faithfully  to  the  educational  needs  of  our  State  and 
country.  We  appreciate  the  high  ideals  that  you  and  the  Board  of  Visitors 
have  for  this  institution.  We  delight  in  its  growth  and  expansion.  We 
rejoice  in  the  prospects  for  an  increase  in  its  endowment  and  facilities.  On 
this  Centennial  anniversary  we  declare  to  you  our  readiness  to  cooperate 


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Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  27 

with  you  in  your  ambitions  and  in  the  superb  efforts  that  are  being  made  to 
promote  culture  and  to  prepare  men  and  women  for  leadership  in  the  State, 
the  nation,  and  the  world.  We  are  yours  to  command  for  the  accomplish- 
ment of  the  cherished  purposes  for  which  this  University  was  established, 
for  in  those  purposes  we  have  an  abiding  faith. 

RESPONSE   BY  PRESIDENT   LOWELL  OF  HARVARD  UNIVERSITY 

It  is  a  privilege  to  speak  for  the  endowed  universities  of  this  country 
at  the  celebration  of  the  one  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  University  of 
Virginia,  founded  by  the  philosopher-statesman,  and  architect  as  well. 
Here  he  lived  during  the  struggle  for  independence,  whereof  he  wrote  the 
charter;  and  here  he  returned  after  his  labors  for  the  new-born  nation,  in 
France,  as  Secretary  of  State  and  as  President.  In  his  later  years  of  well- 
earned  repose  he  lit  here  a  beacon  to  diffuse  the  light  of  learning  he  held 
needful  for  the  people  he  had  served  so  long. 

The  examples  of  such  far-sighted  men  as  he,  have  been  followed,  until 
to-day,  a  host  of  lights  are  shining  over  our  whole  country  from  shore  to 
shore.  The  oceans  that  guard  our  land  are  the  only  things  upon  the  planet 
that  man  does  not,  and  cannot,  change — symbols  of  eternity,  eternally  in 
movement  and  eternally  at  rest.  In  this  they  typify  the  human  spirit,  un- 
changeable yet  ever  changing;  and  the  universities,  which  embody  that 
spirit  in  its  most  refined  and  keenest  form,  should  ever  be  centers  both  of 
continual  movement  and  of  rest. 

Bound  together  in  a  common  cause,  quickened  by  a  common  aim, 
faithful  to  a  noble  trust,  our  universities  and  colleges  are  constantly  calling 
with  their  bells  throughout  this  broad  land — calling  to  one  another  to  serve 
the  needs  of  the  present  time,  and  to  prepare  the  way  for  generations  yet  to 
come. 

Your  bells  have  called,  and  we,  representatives  of  the  great  brotherhood 
of  scholars,  have  come  to  pay  our  tribute  of  respect  to  this  university,  vener- 
able in  years,  but  ever  young; — more  vigorous  and  more  youthful  as  the 
years  roll  on.  We  come  to  tell  you  of  our  faith  that,  large  as  have  been  her 
services  in  the  century  that  is  past,  the  University  of  Virginia,  in  the  century 
that  lies  before  us,  will  be  greater  in  works,  in  influence  and  in  renown. 

RESPONSE  ON  BEHALF  OF  FOREIGN  UNIVERSITIES  BY  HIS  EXCELLENCY  JULES 
JUSSERAND,  FRENCH  AMBASSADOR  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

I  am  most  happy  that  it  is  my  privilege  to  answer  on  this  auspicious  day 
and  to  offer  congratulations,  on  behalf  of  foreign  institutions,  among  which 
are  those  of  France. 


28  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

The  French  feehng  for  the  founder  of  the  University  of  Virginia  was  of 
the  warmest.  Jefferson  had  studied  our  philosophers,  spoke  our  language 
and  spent  five  years  among  us  as  the  diplomatic  representative  of  the  new- 
born American  Republic.  The  sympathy  was  reciprocal.  "  I  do  love  this 
people  with  all  my  heart,  "  he  wrote  from  Paris  to  Mrs.  John  Adams  in  1785. 
The  early  prospects  of  our  own  Revolution  filled  him  with  joy,  and  he  took 
pleasure  later  in  recalling  those  feelings,  when  the  first  guest  from  abroad, 
Lafayette,  was  received  by  your  University,  and  dined  in  your  hall,  with 
Jefferson  and  Madison  in  1824.  In  the  letter  pressing  him  to  visit  what  he 
calls  "our  academical  village,"  Jefferson  reminded  this  early  friend  of 
America  of  the  far-off  time,  when,  one  evening  they,  with  some  "other 
patriots,  settled  in  my  house  in  Paris  the  outlines  of  the  constitution  you 
wished." 

Secretary  of  State,  he  saluted  the  birth  of  our  first  Republic  in  the 
warmest  terms,  assuring  us  that  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  considered 
"the  union  of  principles  and  pursuits  between  our  two  countries  as  a  link 
which  binds  still  closer  their  interests  and  affection."  This  union  of  prin- 
ciples and  affections,  after  half  a  century  of  republican  institutions  in 
France,  is  closer  now  than  ever  before,  as  was  evidenced,  not  by  words,  but 
by  momentous  deeds  in  the  recent  glorious  past. 

When  the  longing  for  independence  had  been  fulfilled  in  this  country, 
the  longing  for  the  spread  of  knowledge  became  preponderant  among  the 
leaders  of  the  nation.  I  wish ,  Jefferson  said,  our  people  would '  *  possess  infor- 
mation enough  to  perceive  the  important  truth  that  knowledge  is  power, 
that  knowledge  is  safety,  that  knowledge  is  happiness."  An  immense  coun- 
try with  untold  possibilities  was  to  be  developed;  and  two  conditions  for 
success  were  indispensable :  on  the  one  hand,  the  pluck,  energy,  clever  under- 
standing of  fearless  pioneers;  on  the  other,  knowledge.  The  nation  had  the 
first,  not  the  second;  it  realized,  however,  its  lack  and  its  chiefs  resolved 
that  the  gap  should  be  filled. 

Peace  was  not  yet  signed,  and  Independence,  just  won,  had  not  been 
consecrated,  when,  as  early  as  1782,  "the  President  and  Professors  of  the 
University  of  William  and  Mary,"  that  famous  institution  where  both 
Washington  and  Jefferson  had  studied,  the  honored  mother  of  the  most 
famous  of  the  literary  societies,  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa,  sent  to  Rochambeau, 
still  in  America,  an  address  couched,  they  said,  "not  in  the  prostituted 
language  of  fashionable  flattery,  but  with  the  voice  of  truth  and  republican 
sincerity,"  saying:  "Among  the  many  substantial  advantages  which  this 
country  hath  already  derived  and  which  must  ever  continue  to  flow  from  its 
connection  with  France,  we  are  persuaded  that  the  improvement  of  useful 
knowledge  will  not  be  the  least.  A  number  of  distinguished  characters  in 
your  army  afford  us  the  happiest  presage  that  science  as  well  as  liberty  will 


a 
> 


K 


PE« 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  29 

acquire  vigor  from  the  fostering  hand  of  your  nation.  .  .  .  You  have 
reaped  the  noblest  laurel  that  victory  can  bestow,  and  it  is  perhaps  not  an 
inferior  triumph  to  have  obtained  the  sincere  affection  of  a  grateful  people." 
It  was  a  fact  that  in  Rochambeau's  army  one  general  was  a  member  of  the 
French  Academy,  Chastellux,  chief  of  staff,  a  great  friend  of  Jefferson,  and 
that  Rochambeau  himself  was  able  to  use  Latin  in  order  to  talk  with  learned 
men  in  America  ignorant  of  French.  This  Virginian  suggestion  was  the 
beginning  of  an  intercourse  which  has  expanded  considerably  since,  to  the 
advantage  of  America,  of  France  and  of  other  countries. 

For  the  solution  of  the  problem  and  the  spread  of  knowledge  in  the 
United  States,  the  two  leaders,  happened  to  be  the  chiefs  of  the  two  political 
parties,  federalists  and  antifederalists,  unanimous  however  on  this  question, 
both  twice  presidents  of  the  United  States;  both  sons  of  Virginia,  George 
Washington  and  Thomas  Jefferson.  The  two  had  dreamt  a  dream  that 
was  not  to  be  fulfilled  in  the  way  they  had  imagined.  They  wanted  a  Na- 
tional University,  ranking  above  all  others,  and  giving  only  instruction  of 
the  highest  order.  Washington  bequeathed  to  the  institution  that  was,  he 
thought,  to  reach  one  day  that  rank,  the  shares  of  the  Potomac  and  the 
James  River  companies  which  he  had  received  as  a  gift  from  his  native  State 
and  which  he  never  intended  to  apply  to  his  own  uses.  Jefferson,  when 
President,  proposed  to  Congress  in  his  sixth  annual  message  the  resumption 
of  the  same  plan,  and  as  subsidies  would  be  expected  from  every  State  he 
recommended  the  vote  of  an  appropriate  amendment  to  the  Constitution. 

The  National  University  was  not  to  be,  but  the  University  of  Virginia 
was  to  be  and  now  is,  greatly  improved,  increased  and  invigorated.  With 
what  love  and  devotion  he  fostered  it,  all  know.  It  was  his  last  great  service 
to  his  country,  one  of  the  only  three  he  allowed  to  be  mentioned  on  his  tomb- 
stone, where  he  is  described  as  the  "father"  of  this  same  University.  He 
had  indeed  for  her  a  fatherly  love;  describing  it  as  "the  last  of  my  mortal 
cares,"  paying  attention  to  every  matter  of  importance  and  also  to  every 
detail;  anxious  about  the  selection  of  professors,  the  attendance  of  pupils 
and  the  style  of  architecture.  Abroad,  he  wrote  with  pride  ' '  they  have  im- 
mensely larger  and  more  costly  masses  but  nothing  handsomer  or  in  chaster 
style."  Professors  were  sometimes  in  those  far-off  days  the  cause  of 
trouble ;  he  complains  of  some  who  teach  Latin  and  pronounce  it  in  such  a 
way  that  you  do  not  know  whether  they  are  not  speaking  Cherokee  or 
Iroquois.  Students  too  have  their  faults,  or  had  in  those  times,  but  all  told, 
the  undertaking  is  a  success,  and  with  pride  again  he  could  write  "A  finer 
set  of  youths  I  never  saw  assembled  for  instruction." 

We  feel  confident  that  if  he  were  to  appear  suddenly  among  us  to-day, 
and  have  a  look  at  the  successors  of  those  he  knew,  he  would  use  the  very 
same  words. 


30  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

He  conceived,  even  from  the  first,  that,  although  for  certain  branches  of 
learning,  he  had  to  depend  on  professors  from  abroad,  yet  American  univer- 
sities could  even  then  be  of  use  to  European  youths.  In  1822  he  wrote  to  a 
friend  of  his  who  was  American  minister  in  Lisbon  that  the  young  people  from 
over  there  might  come  with  profit,  and  get  "famiharized  with  the  habits  and 
practice  of  self-government.  This  lesson  is  scarcely  to  be  acquired  but  in  this 
country,  and  yet,  without  it,  the  political  vessel  is  all  sail  and  no  ballast." 

This  was  indeed  the  lesson  that  without  the  need  of  any  university,  it  is 
true,  or  of  any  teaching  other  than  those  of  events  and  examples,  all  those 
enthusiastic  young  men  who  had  come  from  France  to  fight  for  American 
independence  took  home  with  them.  At  the  time  of  our  Revolution  they 
were  foremost  in  asking  for  equality  and  for  the  abolition  of  privileges, 
Lafayette,  first  among  them  and  Rochambeau  with  him.  Marquis  and 
Count  though  they  were. 

Now  the  fight  for  knowledge  is  won.  While  continuing  to  learn, 
America  can  also  teach ;  she  is  one  of  the  nations  in  the  vanguard  of  civiliza- 
tion as  regards  learning  and  discoveries.  Her  universities,  libraries,  labora- 
tories, scientific  periodicals  are  the  envy  of  more  than  one  foreign  nation. 
She  not  only  receives  professors  from  abroad  but  sends  out  some  of  her  own, 
who  are  received  with  open  arms — and  open  ears.  They  say  things  worthy 
to  be  remembered  and  they  increase  the  respect  and  sympathy  every  liberal 
nation  owes  to  theirs. 

An  even  more  telling  proof  that  the  problem  is  solved  and  that  America 
has  come  to  her  own  in  the  matter  of  learning,  is  the  high  appreciation  in 
which  are  held,  in  every  country,  the  medals,  prizes  or  other  tokens  of 
appreciation  she  may  choose  to  bestow.  Those  tokens  sometimes  are  the 
sign  not  only  of  her  appreciation  of  merit  but  of  her  inborn  warm-heartedness 
and  generosity,  as  when,  the  other  day,  having  heard  that  the  discoverer  of 
radium  possessed  no  radium  she  presented  a  gramme  of  the  rare  substance 
to  Madame  Curie,  the  presentation  being  made  at  the  White  House  by  the 
Chief  of  the  State,  in  a  speech  that  went  to  the  heart  not  only  of  the  illus- 
trious lady  but  of  the  whole  of  France. 

To  all  this,  foreign  institutions  render  homage :  they  are  glad  to  think 
that  their  good  wishes  for  you  are  sure  to  be  fulfilled.  What  a  man  like 
Jefferson  founds  is  certain  to  prosper;  and  it  is  a  good  omen  for  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia  that  the  man  who  secured  her  charter  was  also  the  one 
who  wrote  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

A  FEW  REPRESENTATIVE  GREETINGS 

Out  of  a  large  number  of  greetings  only  a  score,  because  of  space  limita- 
tions, are  included  in  this  volume.  The  original  copies  of  all  greetings  may 
be  seen  in  the  University  Library. 


yA'JAE   UNn'ERSITA  7  / 
s.   P   /). 
UN/yERS/TAS  CANV^ABR/G/t A'S/S 

Recoydaiiiuy.  vm  i/oiZ/.-isinn.  7'ciba  illnts  cjiiaii  scciiiuiunt  post  Gcorgtiim  IVashhigtott 
TPraesidem  elcgcnuit  popu/<  v,stn.  ,j;un  centum  ablmic  niuus  dicta  tandem  conmmmart 
videmus.  Pmcdixit  enun  nationibus  nostns.  diim  niio  ammo  conscntnint.  licet  orbis  totns 
hostiliter  cousnrgaf.  niliit  esse  timendnm :  innno  lias  nationes  exriiipia  praest/tnras  esse. 
quibiis  irformetur  vitae  hnmana,  conditio,  mciton  et  foutes  fore,  e  ,/,nbns  per  onn/cs  terras 
dif/undatnr  ,11a  reipnhlicae  nonua.  qua  populus  omnia  per  legatos  suos  adm/nestrrt.  Qu,. 
annis  nosfns  cousociatis.  vulerunt  bello  ma.ynno  Jinrm  factum,  gentes  Ilnropaeas  lougam'post 
mortem  renatas.  et  ipsis  liosttbns  tyrannorum  denique  imperii  expert, bus  libeiiatcm  redditam. 
illi  noil  ten/ere  locutiim  esse  ai-bitiabiinlur  Thomam  fetfci'.^ou. 

Xec  oblit,  snmus  eundrm  ri>;im.  cum  epitaphium  sib,  para  ret.  ilind  omisissc  quod  bis 
electus  cssct  ut  iripublicae  .lmer,canae  praesideret.  sed  dum  Liberia tis  illam  Dechu-ationem 
a  se  consc-iptam.  dim,  I  ■,rg„„an,s  se  ausp,ce  in  rebus  sac,-is  liberum  datum  a,b,t,;um.  uon 
immc,;to  revocat.  maluis.~^e  sese  titulo  tertio  n,sc,;be,-e  i  -urecr^itatis  vcstrae  ftndatorem. 

.Icademiae  vestrae  quas  dederit  leges  nobis  non  ,g„otum  est.  ut  stndentibus  rem  adiiiic 

Viauditam    concesserit   studionim    electionem :    ut    Re,    Ru.<t:eae.    linguae    .Inglornm    et 

Ja.vonum,  et  .Irtis  politicac  pracscip.^erit  inter  cetera  studia  habcndam  esse  ratiouem :  ut 

-icadcmiam  sine  Rcctore  voluent  rem  suam  curare.  gube,;,aci,lo  quofannis  proPes.soribus 

nviccm  tradito. 

Gaiidemns  ergo  ccrtiores  facti  Luiversiiatem  vcst,-am.  tot  et  tantannn  inter  populos 
vest,-os  Academiarnm  Matirm.  <,ntes,mum  annum  p,vped,em  essr  celebraturam  et  dele- 
ganius  nrnestum  ll-illelmum  Jh::en.  Collegii  C/iristi  socum  lionoianum.  nee  in  .lst,vnom,a 
it  credimus  ingkvmm.  nee  e:,;bus  vestris  in  irpublica  de  Couuect,cut  ignotum.  nt  sacris 
'cstris  saccnla,-tbus  luter.it  el  vobis  praesens  signifcet  la,t,t,am  nostrum. 

Dal:,.,:    l.,,:.'.,/.n^.,„f 
■-    ',     :.:    A:„:    .1/,,: 

"■■•■'■    .S  //.v//.,    n:, „:.,!:,,,■    •■UMXXl, 


Greetings  from  the  University  of  Cambridge 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  31 

l'universit6  de  PARIS  A  l'universit6  de  virginie 

Monsieur  le  President  : 

L'Universite  de  Paris  vous  apporte,  en  ce  jour  memorable  du  premier 
centenaire  de  votre  Universite,  ses  compliments  et  ses  voeux, 

Un  professeur  etranger  se  sent  de  suite  a  I'aise  parmi  vous  et  dans  I'en- 
ceinte  de  votre  "campus,"  car  il  n'oublie  pas  que  vos  premiers  coUabora- 
teurs  furent  precisement  des  etrangers,  arrives  comme  lui  d'Europe.  Des 
ses  debuts,  et,  pour  ainsi  dire,  avant  la  lettre,  I'Universite  de  Virginie  reali- 
sait  ainsi  cette  liaison  intellectuelle  et  scientifique  entre  I'Amerique  et  I'Eu- 
rope,  qui  ramene  aujourd'hui  pres  de  vous  les  delegues  des  Universites  soeurs. 

L'Universite  de  Virginie  s'est  fait,  dans  le  pays  americain,  une  reputa- 
tion de  charme  irresistible :  je  ne  sais  pas  une  autre  Ecole,  aux  Etats-Unis, 
dont  ses  "alumni"  parlent  avec  autant  de  tendresse  emue.  Assurement,  la 
beaute  des  b^timents  et  la  douceur  du  climat  ne  suffisent  pas  a  expliquer 
cette  attraction,  car  il  ne  manque  pas  de  constructions  magnifiques  et  de 
sites  choisis  dans  la  liste  des  Universites  americaines.  II  faut,  pour  expliquer 
le  charme  que  vous  exercez,  admettre  qu'il  y  a  quelque  chose  de  plus  que  des 
causes  ordinaires,  et  ce  quelque  chose  semble  bien  ^tre  I'esprit  de  votre 
fondateur  qui  se  transmet,  revere  et  enrichi,  de  generation  en  generation. 

Pour  I'exprimer  d'un  mot,  cet  esprit  de  Jefferson,  c'est  I'esprit  moderne 
dans  son  sens  le  plus  genereux  et  le  plus  large.  L'idee  qui  a  ete  deposee  dans 
vos  murs  avec  la  premiere  pierre  et  la  premiere  truelle  de  ciment,  c'est  l'idee 
essentiellement  moderne  de  I'egalite  devant  instruction.  Sans  doute,  une 
universite  ne  peut  pourvoir  a  toutes  les  phases  de  I'enseignement,  puisqu'elle 
s'adresse  k  une  elite  deja  preparee.  Mais  l'idee  de  I'instruction  universelle 
qui  hantait  Jefferson  dans  le  bouillonnement  de  ses  jeunes  annees,  etait  si 
feconde,  encore  qu'irrealisable  a  son  epoque,  qu'elle  a  comme  depose  un 
rayon  de  gr^ce  et  d'attirance  dans  le  berceau  de  votre  Universite  naissante. 
Lorsque  les  projets,  prenant  corps  lentement,  a  travers  les  difficult^s  ad- 
ministratives  et  financieres  et  les  competitions  geographiques,  se  furent 
fixes  dans  I'esprit  de  Jefferson  et  des  hommes  de  bien  qui  furent  ses  coUa- 
borateurs,  on  dut  sans  doute  constater  qu'une  restriction  avait  6t6  operee, 
et  qu'a  I'enseignement  universitaire  etait  seulement  devolue  la  tache  d'as- 
surer  la  culture  "de  la  science  a  un  haut  degre."  Mais  en  m^me  temps, 
l'idee  primitive  reparaissait  dans  une  formule  indiquant  le  but  a  poursuivre, 
a  savoir  donner  a  chaque  citoyen  une  instruction  ' '  en  rapport  avec  ses  res- 
sources."  Ainsi,  dans  votre  pays  a  peine  installe  dans  sa  jeune  liberte,  une 
Universite  se  fondait,  t^tonnant  a  travers  mille  obstacles,  mais  guidee  par  ce 
fanal  qui  jamais  ne  s'^teint,  le  souci  de  former  I'^me  populaire. 

Voila  l'idee  clairvoyante  et  genereuse  qui  a  groupe  vos  disciples  et  qui 
pen^tre  de  sympathie  pour  vous  vos  visiteurs  du  Vieux-Monde. 


32  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Sans  doute,  la  joie  que  nous  6prouvons  k  nous  joindre  a  vos  f^tes  ne 
nous  fait  pas  oublier  a  nous  autres  universitaires  frangais,  la  terrible  epreuve 
que  nous  venons  de  traverser  et  rhecatombe  qui  a  fauche,  parmi  notre 
jeunesse,  les  rangs  les  plus  lourds  d'espoir.  Elle  ne  nous  fait  pas  oublier  non 
plus  le  magnifique  et  genereux  elan  qui,  parti  de  vos  universites,  a  place 
votre  pays  a  nos  cotes  dans  la  lutte  supreme.  Mais  nous  savons  aussi  que 
la  vie  ne  s'arrete  pas  a  cause  des  deuils,  et  que  I'herbe  continue  a  verdir  sur 
nos  tombes  m^me  les  plus  cheries.  Le  flot  des  generations  nouvelles  monte 
sans  s'arr^ter  les  degr6s  qui  m^nent  k  nos  salles,  et  nous  savons  que  nous 
avons  la  charge  de  guider  sans  faiblir  I'^me  de  ceux  d'aujourd'hui  et  de 
ceux  de  demain,  exactement  comme  si  notre  pa  trie  ne  venait  pas  d'etre 
bouleversee  par  I'ouragan.  Le  passe,  nous  ne  I'oublions  pas,  c'est  notre  bien 
k  nous,  c'est  notre  deuil  sacre;  mais  nous  ne  voulons  pas  nous  en  laisser  dis- 
traire  dans  notre  vision  de  I'avenir. 

Laissez-moi  done  vous  assurer.  Monsieur  le  President,  que  I'Universite 
de  Paris  est,  sans  arriere-pensee,  profondement  heureuse  de  f^ter  avec  vous 
aujourd'hui  votre  anniversaire  de  joie  et  votre  grand  elan  d'esperance.  Le 
spectacle  de  la  jeunesse  et  de  la  vigueur  de  votre  Universite  est  bienfaisant 
pour  nous,  car  ces  vertus  nous  garantissent  que  vous  comprenez  comme 
nous  I'aspiration  commune  qui  doit  nous  unir,  celle  de  preparer,  pour  nos 
pays  respectifs  et  pour  le  monde,  un  avenir  de  lumi^re  oii  la  science  regne, 
pacifique  et  large, — et  en  meme  temps  un  avenir  de  generosite  scientifique 
repudiant  a  la  fois  I'esprit  de  domination  et  I'esprit  d'orgueil,  qui  sont  la 
negation  de  la  recherche,  telle  que  la  congoivent  de  libres  citoyens. 

Le  Professeur,  Le  Recteur, 

DeleguS  de  L'  Universite  de  Paris,        President  du  Conseil  de  L'  Universite  de 

(Signed)  Jules  Legras.  Paris, 

(Signed)  Paul  Appelly. 

The  President,  Fellows  and  Faculty  of  Yale  University  send 
their  greetings  to  the  University  of  Virginia,  and  congratulate  its  officers 
and  alumni  on  the  completion  of  one  hundred  years  of  distinguished  service 
to  the  cause  of  the  Arts  and  Sciences.  They  recognize  that  no  American 
University  has  had  higher  standards  for  degrees  than  the  University  of 
Virginia,  and  that  few  institutions  have  done  so  much  to  train  men  to  take 
their  part  as  leaders  of  citizenship  in  the  Nation  and  its  constituent  common- 
wealths. Intimately  identified  as  it  is  with  the  immortal  name  of  Jefferson 
and  with  many  men  prominent  in  literature,  scholarship,  and  public  life, 
such  as  Poe,  Maury,  Kane,  Wilson,  Davis,  Gildersleeve,  Tucker,  Minor  and 
Venable,  the  institution  has  an  unchallenged  position  in  the  front  rank  of 
that  small  group  of  historic  universities  of  national  significance  and  influence. 
The  University  has  fully  justified  its  founder's  purpose  as  interpreted  by 


-*,.,.»  .     --.«.«^rrr««#W^«*n-'--<'^'^***««SI*»~^ 


TI'^STni^crsitc  de  Geneve 

a  VWniversile  deWirginie 


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^r.i/  iiert  volon/iens  cl  viett  corolct/ement  <3ue  ^ '  llnLver^ite^ 
'  D^'  ir/e/teye  rcpc/io-   J.  /'invifah'o/i    Del'  luii\'e/isiie  (Xe 
3  iryi/iid   . 

Vioi/s  nous  -ixssocions  -a  vos  senlintents  Dc  flerte  -et  D^^ 
'     J^ie  -et  nous  /onnons  /trs    voeux  les  jmus   txrJenls   aoui^ 
-iu    /jrosperile   S)e  voire  .s/tauie    &<ujte^  . 

Vk     universile  De   zfi^neye   n  'ol.   ooinh  ^u/fiie  (eS 
^irconslances  am  on/  nce/e  so//  no/ri.  ti  /'/yisloire  Je to  rouDa//ojc 
De<    u/iu'ersile  De  y^'ixyuiie.  Gx/e  esl  lus/eme/i/ fie/-e  Des  raodio/tj 
D'^rnifie jqui  onl  Ji/ti.  / oroouiisa/eur  ^  Stx  i/itciiue Des &ciencef^ 

De/iJC  fois  on/  ^naaoe  u-  (^/-auD  ^^ir^inien  a  /^ii/v  xiauel  -<£, 
jo/t  co/zfours.CJi  oe//e  ro//aiforaJiou  fui^  en  f^Sf^,aiiJc/onrf 
So/nhres  De  noife  ^Aeyo/u/ion ,  nc  /entxi/  rien  mains  au'a  un 
frnnsrerl  ojuc  dia/s  -  ilnls  D  \/tr/zeri(7ne  De  lo/ile  c  J^.ccroe/n/e 
3e  Ca/yin  ,  S  es/  oornee ,  en  fS03^  a  / en\'oi  De  Jon  plan  o'oroanlsab'oa 
e/  De  son  p/xmramrne  Dehtdes ,-eile  n  en,  a  pas  moins  laisse  anx. 
^:/eneyo/s  ///i.  Souvenir  .ati  'its  so/i/  tienreux  De  retppe/er  . 

Jale  Qjoiije.  ^  y/lonliee//tr  <x  e/e  par  la  pensee  iul  p-ere^ 
De  nos  /nal/res  ies  pHus  v//us//-es .  Clesf  ponr^uoi  an  mante/ilr 
ea    vous  ee/e'/fre^l  le  een/ena/re  De  so/i  oeuy/v  u/iiversifai/-e. 


49 


nous  Senfons  le  ^esom  De  yoiis  uDresser  le  piDeie  /to 
Dc  leur  0<}sferi/e  . 


za^^e^ 


rj,. 


^encyc ,  le  -/S  ^zi^ril  fg^/ 

lie    Recletir  : 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  33 

President  Madison  "to  make  it  a  nursery  of  republican  patriots,  as  well  as 
genuine  scholars." 

The  officers  of  Yale  University  have  rejoiced  at  the  progress  made  by 
this  ancient  University  ' '  bom  of  the  union  of  human  enthusiasm  and  civic 
impulse"  during  the  brilliant  administration  of  President  Alderman,  and 
hope  and  believe  that  it  may  serve  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia  and  the 
Nation  with  equal  distinction  during  the  generation  to  come. 
In  the  necessary  absence  of  President  Hadley, 
Rev.  Anson  Phelps  Stokes,  D.D.,  Secretary  of  the  University, 
has  been  duly  appointed  Yale  University's  delegate  and  will  present  these 
greetings  and  congratulations. 

Anson  Phelps  Stokes, 

Secretary. 
Arthur  Twining  Hadley, 
President. 


[The  University  of  Li^ge] 
ILLUSTRISSIM^  UNIVERSITATIS  VIRGINIANS  PRSSIDI 
S.  P.  D.    Rector  Universitatis  Leodiensis 

Pergratum  fuit  mihi  collegisque  meis,  quod  ex  litteris  tuis  nuperrime 
allatis  didicimus,  Universitatem,  quae  in  Virginia  floret,  annum  ab  origine 
sua  centesimum  feliciter  exactum  propediem  ineunte  mense  lunio  per  quat- 
tuor  dies  solemniter  celebraturam.  Vos  iuvabit  in  memoriam  revocare, 
quae  magna  percentum  annos  peregit  Universitas  vestra,  quae  tam  varise  et 
multiplicis  eruditionis  luminibus  in  praeterito  illustrata  est  atque  adeohodie 
illustratur,  quae  tam  numerosae  iuventuti  doctrinae  beneficia  quotannis 
impertit,  ut  trans  Oceanum  innotuerit  et  inter  insignissimas  litterarum  et 
scientiae  sedes  iam  numeretur.  Nos  iuvat  collegis  transmarinis,  studiorum 
communium  vinculo  nobiscum  consociatis,  toto  animo  gratulari. 

Quod  nos  quoque  vestri  gaudii  participes  esse  voluistis,  gratias  vobis 
quam  maximas  agimus :  nisi  Oceano  interposito  et  itineris  longinquitate,  nisi 
exeuntis  anni  academici  officiis  et  Universitatis  nostras  instaunrandae  cura 
essemus  impediti,  quae  per  plus  quam  quattuor  annos  Transrhenanorum 
barbaria  desolata  nunc  demum  pace  parta  reviviscit,  legatum  ad  vos  trans 
Oceanum  mittere  placuisset,  vestrae  laetitiae  testem  et  participem  futurum 
qui  vobis  nostrum  omnium  nomine  praesens  gratularetur :  nunc  absentes 
vobiscum  sacra  vestra  celebrantibus  laetabimur  vobisque  omnia  fausta  for- 
tunataque  precati,  exoptamus  ut  Universitas  vestra  Virginiana  vitam  tam 


34  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

f eliciter,  tarn  praeclare  inchoatam  per  plurima  saecula  in  dies  illustrior  perse- 
quatur.    Vale. 

Dabam  Leodii  Belgarum 
anno  MIMXXI  die  Mart.  X 

UNIVERSITATIS  LEODIENSIS 

Rector 

(Signed)  Eugene  Hubert. 
Secretarius  academicus, 

(Signed)  J.  Deruyts. 

Bologna,    addi  22  Febbrajo  1921. 

Al  Magnifico  Rettore 

DELLA  UnIVERSITA  DI 

Virginia,  U.  S.  A. 

Questo  Rettorato,  dispiacente  che  le  presenti  condizioni  non  gli  consen- 
tano  di  intervenire  alia  solenne  celebrazione  dell'anniversario  della  Fon- 
dazione  di  codesta  illustre  University,  mentre  ringrazia  sentitamente  per  il 
gentile  invito,  manda  la  sua  cordiale  adesione  alia  cerimonia,  anche  a  nome 
di  questo  Corpo  Accademico,  ed  esprime  i  migliori  e  piu  fervidi  auguri  per 
la  prosperita  di  codesto  Ateneo. 

Con  particolare  osservanza. 

//  Rettorre, 
(Signed)  Vittorio  Puntoni. 


RECTOR  ET  SENATUS  UNIVERSITATIS  CAROLINiE  PRAGENSIS 
ALM^  ET  ANTIQUISSIMyE  UNIVERSITATI  VIR- 
GINIENSI 

S.  P.  D. 

Cum  lastus  ad  nos  nuntius  allatus  esset  Universitatem  Virginiensem, 
quae  inter  Universitates  Americanas  insignem  locum  obtinet  sacra  saecularia 
celebraturam  esse,  summo  affecti  sumus  gaudio.  At  dolebamus,  quod 
propter  itineris  longinquitatem  aliasque  horum  temporum  difficultates 
legatum  ad  soUemnia  clarissimae  Universitatis  celebranda  mittere  non  possu- 
mus. 

Quantopere  autem  Universitas  nostra  Carolina  perenni  flore  inclitae 
Universitatis  Virginiensis  laetetur,  his  litteris  declarare  volumus. 

Itaque  quando  illi  dies  festi  Almae  Matris  Virginiensis,  qui  erunt  ex 
pridie  Kalendas  usque  ad  a.  d.  III.  Nonas  Junias  huius  anni,  advenient, 
Universitas  nostra  celeberrimam  Universitatem  Virginiensem  optimis 
ominibus  prosequetur  exoptans,  ut  ad  litterarum  artiumque  incrementum 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  35 

atque  ad  salutem  patriae  suae  totiusque  generis  humani  utilitatem  per  multa 
saecula  floreat,  crescat,  augeatur. 

Datum  Pragae  Kalendis  Martiis  anni  MCMXXI,  qui  est  ab  Universi- 
tate  nostra  condita  quingentesimus  septuagesimus  tertius. 


BROWN  UNIVERSITY 
Providence,  R.  I. 

The  Corporation  and  Faculty  of  Brown  University  extend  to  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia,  on  its  hundredth  anniversary,  greeting  and  felicitation. 

No  institution  of  the  higher  learning  has  affected  American  education 
more  vitally  and  fruitfully  than  the  University  of  Virginia.  Your  original 
ideals  and  purposes  were  distinctly  different  from  those  animating  the 
colleges  and  universities  of  the  North,  and  because  you  were  different  you 
have  helped  us  all. 

More  than  seventy  years  ago  the  great  president  of  Brown  University, 
Francis  Wayland,  seeking  to  effect  certain  changes  in  New  England  educa- 
tion, was  drawn  to  the  institution  founded  by  Thomas  Jefferson.  On  re- 
turning from  his  memorable  visit  he  wrote  his  famous  ' '  Report  to  the  Cor- 
poration" of  1850,  which  was  like  the  sound  of  a  trumpet  echoing  through 
the  quiet  valleys  of  New  England.  From  that  day  Virginia  began  to  make 
its  notable  educational  contribution  to  the  Northern  States. 

We  of  Brown  University  greet  you  at  the  beginning  of  your  second 
century.  May  increased  resources  bring  only  increased  devotion  to  the 
early  purpose  of  yoiir  distinguished  founder,  and  may  the  fraternal  inter- 
change of  ideals  and  methods  among  American  colleges  grow  with  the  grow- 
ing years. 

(Signed)  William  H.  P.  Faunce, 

President. 

June  2,  192 1. 

OHIO  STATE  UNIVERSITY 

The  Ohio  State  University  felicitates  and  congratulates  the  University 
of  Virginia  upon  the  happy  and  honorable  completion  of  One  Hundred 
Years  in  the  service  of  Higher  Education  and  expresses  the  hope  that  the 
Centennial  Exercises  may  deepen  the  interest  in  the  Old  Dominion  and  to 
the  Country  rendered  in  the  Century  now  past  by  the  distinguished  men 
who  have  constituted  the  Faculty. 

The  Alimini  have  taken  a  high  place  in  the  history  of  the  Country 
representing  in  many  instances  the  most  distinguished  citizenship  of  the 
Nation.    The  spirit  of  the  scholar  has  never  departed  since  the  illustrious 


36  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

founder,  Thomas  Jefferson,  laid  the  foundations  of  American  Scholarship 
devoted  to  the  public  service. 

The  University  of  Virginia  in  a  very  real  sense  a  monument  to  his  genius 
is  at  the  same  time  a  testimonial  of  the  men  whose  untiring  energies  have 
sustained  the  ideals  of  Jefferson. 

The  President,  Trustees  and  Faculty  of  Ohio  State  University  greet 
with  enthusiasm  their  colleagues  in  the  University  of  Virginia  and  have 
commissioned  Prof essor  Rosser  Daniel  Bohannan,  Class  of  1876,  University 
of  Virginia,  and  for  thirty-four  years  Professor  of  Mathematics  at  Ohio 
State  University,  to  bear  these  greetings  and  to  represent  the  University 
in  the  Centennial  exercises. 

By  the  authority  and  direction  of  the  Trustees  of  The  Ohio  State  Uni- 
versity, Columbus,  Ohio. 

(Signed)  William  Oxley  Thompson, 
President  of  the  University. 

April  28,  1 92 1. 


THE  ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  LONDON 

To  THE  University  of  Virginia  : 

The  Royal  Society  of  London  sends  to  the  University  of  Virginia 
its  most  cordial  congratulations  on  the  Hundredth  Anniversary  of  its 
Foundation. 

Its  long  roll  of  alumni  contains  the  names  of  many  who  have  enriched 
Natural  Science  and  other  branches  of  knowledge,  of  many  who  have  ad- 
vanced the  cause  of  learning,  of  many  who  have  played  a  distinguished  part 
in  affairs  of  State.  Through  these  men  the  University  of  Virginia  has  con- 
tributed to  the  intellectual  heritage  of  the  English-speaking  race,  and  to  the 
civilization  of  the  whole  world.  That  the  future  of  the  University  of  Virginia 
will  be  no  less  illustrious  than  its  past  is  the  sincere  hope  and  confident  belief 
of  the  Royal  Society  of  London. 

(Signed)  Charles  S.  Sherrington, 

President. 

(Signed)  W.  B.  Hardy, 
(Signed)  J.  H.  Jeans, 

Secretaries. 

Burlington  House, 
London,  W.  i. 


(tltdlttmrmtg  nf  iifennism 

sends  gVccting  to  "i^hc  *'Hnivcrsitv  of  Virgin  ia 
on  the  completion  of  the  first  cciiturp  of  its  htc. 

OT^itgafpittiimH' 

wa5  founded  as  an  institution'whcrcin 
all  the  branches  of  useful  sciences  n^re 
to  be  taughf  and  for  a  hundred  years  it  has  given 
to  this  purpose  a  nobilit>^  of  meaning  and  a  full- 
ness of  execution  which  has  made  the  llniwrsit)? 
a  guide  and  an  inspiration  in  public  education 
jy^s  it  was  first  ii\  die  conception  of  state  eduea- 
tion  a  century  a^o,  so  todav  it  takes  up  with  fidl 
stren^h  the  gi*eater  problems  of  a  new  ap:.  May 
years  and  cenmries  as  thev  pass  bring  to  it  in- 
creasing power  with  tlie  e\vr-renaved  afFectioa 
and  reverence  of  the  ITation. 


.^lTav3Uf)5I. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  37 

THE  SMITHSONIAN  INSTITUTION  TO  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF 

VIRGINIA 

Greeting 

On  the  occasion  of  the  centennial  celebration  of  the  University  of  Vir- 
ginia, the  Smithsonian  Institution  most  heartily  congratulates  the  Uni- 
versity on  its  hundred  years  of  prosperity  and  usefulness,  its  long  line  of 
achievements  in  broadening  knowledge  in  the  learned  professions,  and  on  its 
rolls  of  teachers  and  students  bearing  so  many  names  of  men  of  eminence 
whose  lives  have  honored  their  university  and  their  country. 

The  Smithsonian  Institution,  founded  for  the  increase  and  diffusion  of 
knowledge  among  men,  extends  to  the  University  of  Virginia  its  well  wishes 
for  an  even  greater  usefulness  in  the  field  of  learning  during  future  centuries. 

(Signed)  Charles  D.  Walcott, 

Secretary. 

May  28,  192 1. 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  CONGRESS  TO  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF 
VIRGINIA  UPON  THE  OCCASION  OF  ITS  ONE 
HUNDREDTH  ANNIVERSARY 

The  most  of  the  greetings  conveyed  to-day  are  from  sister  institutions 
of  learning.  This,  from  a  library,  cannot  claim  quite  equal  rank;  for  a 
library,  though  it  contains  certain  of  the  elements  of  an  institution  of  learn- 
ing— an  essential  apparatus,  and,  in  a  sense,  a  faculty — lacks  others  equally 
essential ;  it  neither  prescribes  a  system  of  studies  nor  imposes  authority  in 
their  process,  with  deliberate  selection,  towards  a  definite  end.  Its  greeting 
cannot,  therefore,  bring  the  sympathy  of  a  like  experience  in  identical 
problems. 

But  the  Library  so-called  "of  Congress"  has  a  concern  for  learning  far 
beyond  its  immediate  privileged  constituency.  It  is  a  library  '  *  for  research ' ' ; 
it  has  a  paramount  interest  in  the  promotion  of  that  research — ever5rwhere — 
whose  end  may  be  the  widening  of  the  boundaries  of  knowledge.  And  its 
effort  is  to  extend  its  resources  freely  and  fully  in  aid  of  this.  It  does  so 
chiefly  through  the  Universities;  and  its  interest  is  keen  in  the  prosperity 
and  progress  of  these.  Having,  itself,  the  duty  to  conserve  and  make  useful 
the  records  of  the  past,  it  especially  rejoices  in  an  institution  who  so  per- 
sistently honors  and  links  itself  with  the  past  as  does  the  University  of 
Virginia. 

In  addition  to  these  general  motives  it  has  a  unique  sympathy  with  this 
occasion  from  the  fact  that  the  universality  of  its  collections  and  the  serious- 
ness of  its  aims  are  preeminently  due  to  Jefferson  himself.    The  very  founda- 


38  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

tion  of  its  present  collections  was  Jefferson's  own  library;  it  was  Jefferson 
who  named  it  "The  Library  of  the  United  States";  and  it  was  the  compre- 
hensiveness of  his  selection,  the  largeness  of  his  view,  and  his  confident  faith 
in  a  democracy  of  learning,  that,  establishing  thus  early  its  character  and 
purpose,  have  assured  its  development  into  a  library  truly  "national."  It 
therefore  shares  with  you  the  shadow  of  the  great  Founder. 
May  that  Shadow  never  grow  less ! 

Washington, 
June  the  first. 

Nineteen  hundred  and  twenty-one. 


VANDERBILT  UNIVERSITY  TO  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 

Greetings 

To  the  University  of  Virginia,  now  celebrating  the  Centennial  of  her 
foimding,  Vanderbilt  University  sends  greetings  and  congratulations. 

The  rare  beauty  of  buildings  and  grounds,  the  high  standards  and  ideals 
of  scholarship,  the  adoption  from  the  beginning  of  the  principle  of  freedom 
of  electives,  and  the  maintenance  by  the  student  body  of  the  honor  system, 
have  rightly  won  for  her  the  admiration  and  praise  of  all  American  institu- 
tions. 

The  prestige  of  past  achievements  is  the  surest  guarantee  of  her  future 
success. 

That  she  may  command  the  resources  necessary  for  the  extension  of  her 
work  and  influence  is  the  earnest  wish  of  her  younger  sisters,  who  covet  the 
privilege  of  cooperating  with  her  in  the  making  of  a  greater  nation. 

(Signed)  J.  H.  Kirkland, 
Chancellor  oj  Vanderbilt  University. 

Nashville,  Tennessee, 
June  I,  1921. 

GREETINGS: 

In  her  Centennial  Year 

Celebrated  May  31st,  to  June  3,  1921, 

to  the 

University  of  Virginia 

the  first  in  America  to  grant  a  scholarship  to 

students  from  the 

University  of  Belgrade 

which  was  shattered  in  the  World  War, 


fe  W^  to  Hk  <► 

GREETINGS 

i  i^nitc  cric-IntrnVct^Ht  inmipcre'm-tt  ofrfrc  M.m 
''  t'cr«>'fhT  of  ^irijTrriu. 

«J&Iic'rvt>  JiiJc  bciira  Hj  Htc  inuncrhil  ^Jjct't'crocri, 
lft>nrii*ct^  upon  Htc  prmcrplc^  cf  JrnHT  ;IrT^  JoTcr- 
miiiiJ"''"-'-''  cTiiTnTcK'rrrc^  fnj  irifb'ihcuv  ite-  crrfhrHc  ;i& 
Hicij  arc  hcrioraWi:,  5.^cu^I;  conFrilnibr  tc  Hrc  l^jepnMic 
of  '^cikvi'tini'  jQ^CTCiTCC,  niire>c  of  c-hi\o>rucn,  ihc  ^ni- 
I'cr^Hn  of-^traxni-.T,  CtMi^HhrHftci.iTS'  H  it'crc,rtic  iriU'I' 
Iccluul  aiitcii'iiiT  I'chi'ccn  ]I^crHt  ait^  ^wiHt  Tur?  wen 
A\c  plittr^ib  itni>  a^itKiJutNc.notwtlrr  of  thcO\i>^c>mmm% 
hn\  of  Htc  entire  nirlion, 

^'^^oiticll  Q[nix'cr&'rhj  conqrahrliiK'^  her  elder  i'ivicr 
liipoii  Kic^c  OIK  IntntVci)  rjeuro  of  cx«Tk(>  i-crvicc. 
%;^-Mii*  cxpro^c^  Hk  t'^^^I♦crT^  fiopc  Hiirt  i-hc  mun 
(TonHirnc  to  rlom-r^jlt  in  cver'incrcaviuci  iircfulnc^^^  io 
acncruHofi^  rjci  imlvrn. 

j|c'  ii  fnrHrcr  loI:cn  of  Ci-lccm,  QonicII  ^niivr^il-rr 
|:&irnt^«'  Hti&  mc^^acic  of  arcctin^j^fM^  Hic  lumt*!:-.  of 
iltcr  former  J^rce-aVnt^iTCoI'l^onKNl^jcltHnmin, 


iini*  of  fterlionorci^  ;Tlnmnnsi;^lTom:ti.  Hioonar^  HIabon 
^rvfcf=.&or  of  Qconoinief§^coIoaij  iri  ihc  '^nii'cr^ih; 
of  [Q}iro,iuhx. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  39 

Our  greetings  are  sent  to  you  officially  through 
Rosalie  S.  Morton,  M.D.,  of  Virginia, 
the  Founder  and  Chairman  of  the 
International  Serbian  Educational  Committee 
from 
our  Executive  Committee,  Advisory  Board,  and  the 
students  who  are  now  studying  in  schools,  colleges 
and  universities  from  Vermont  to  Texas  and  from 
Massachusetts  to  California  with  heartfelt  gratitude 
and  appreciation  of  the  world  comradeship 

of 
American  educators,  among  the  greatest  of  whom 
for  all  time,  Serbia  honors  the  name 

of 
Thomas  Jefferson 


A   LETTER  TO  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA  FROM   THE 

RICE  INSTITUTE 

In  accepting  the  invitation  of  the  Rector  and  Visitors  and  the  President 
and  Faculty  of  the  University  of  Virginia  requesting  the  presence  of  a  dele- 
gate from  the  Rice  Institute  during  the  exercises  in  celebration  of  the  one 
hundredth  anniversary  of  the  founding  of  the  University  to  be  held  on 
Tuesday,  Wednesday,  Thursday  and  Friday,  May  the  thirty-first  to  June 
the  third,  nineteen  hundred  and  twenty-one,  the  Trustees  and  Faculty  of  the 
Rice  Institute  have  pleasure  also  in  announcing  the  appointment  of  Mr. 
Stockton  Axson,  Litt.D.,  L.H.D.,  LL.D.,  Professor  of  EngHsh  Literature,  to 
represent  on  so  auspicious  an  occasion  in  the  history  of  University  education 
in  America  the  youngest  of  educational  foundations  in  the  South,  and  to 
bear  to  the  University  of  Virginia,  Alma  Mater  of  men  and  of  universities, 
cordial  greetings  of  congratulation  and  good-will  from  the  Rice  Institute,  a 
university  of  liberal  and  technical  learning  founded  by  William  Marsh  Rice, 
and  dedicated  by  him  to  the  advancement  of  Letters,  Science  and  Art,  by 
instruction  and  by  investigation  in  the  individual  and  in  the  race  of  human- 
ity. And  these  cordial  greetings  carry  also  grateful  recognition  of  several 
reminders  of  his  ancient  university  which  an  alumnus  of  Virginia  may  dis- 
cover in  the  environment  of  the  new  institution  in  Texas :  a  campus  site  of 


40  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

spacious  dimensions  and  a  comprehensive  architectural  plan  of  dignity  and 
distinction ;  the  spirit  of  research  and  teaching  housed  in  a  home  of  extra- 
ordinary beauty  as  well  as  of  more  immediate  utility,  and  the  features  of  the 
founder  of  the  University  of  Virginia  cut  in  stone  among  the  effigies  of  its 
patron  saints  in  the  more  humane  letters,  ancient  and  modern,  and  the 
fundamental  sciences,  pure  and  applied;  a  society  of  scholars  seeking  solu- 
tions of  the  universe  of  thought  and  things,  and  a  guild  of  students  living  a 
common  life  under  the  restraining  influences  of  an  honor  system  of  self- 
government:  these  reflections  of  academic  traditions  that  flourished  in 
Virginia's  early  history :  and  Faith  and  Freedom :  here  the  freedom  of  the 
plains,  as  there  the  freedom  of  the  mountains:  here,  as  there,  faith  in  the 
capacity  of  human  intelligence  to  find  in  human  experience  firm  foundations 
of  hope  for  the  human  spirit :  and  here  as  there,  the  freedom  vouchsafed  by  a 
heavenly  vision  of  service  towards  which  men  may  well  press  forward, 
heartened  by  whatever  of  progress  our  civilization  may  have  already 
achieved  towards  Justice,  Security,  Tolerance,  Knowledge. 

Houston,  Texas, 

January,  a.d.  MCMXXI. 


LIST  OF  DELEGATES 
Delegates  from  Institutions  in  Foreign  Countries 

University  of  Paris 

Professor  Jules  Legras 
University  of  Oxford 

Professor  Beverley  Dandridge  Tucker,  Jr. 
University  of  Cambridge 

Professor  Ernest  William  Brown 
University  of  Saint  Andrews 

Mr.  William  John  Matheson 
University  of  Geneva 

His  Excellency  Marc  Peter 
University  of  Edinburgh 

Professor  John  Kelman 
The  Royal  Society 

Professor  Ernest  William  Brown 
University  of  Christiania 

Mr.  Ame  Kildal 
University  of  Toronto 

Professor  Wilfred  Pirt  Mustard 


■©he  ^pwi^f^  ^Tteotogicd  jStmrnw^oF^lmcrica 
f 0  tlte  X^n\vev0iin,  of  wginia 

Ghc  X)irfftoraf  anftflteyaruttjj  of  tdc  Jewish  !5hcolo(\ical 
iSrntinnru  of  America  have  ihr  honor  to  pregmttficir 
hcnrtirfit'concjratutatiou:^  tii  the  Rrrtor  and  VtsrifmpB'nOT 
the  President  cm6  the  IFarultji,  of  the 

Omtm^  of  Mrginia 

on  Ae  oceasiion  of  the  O^kbration  of  theOne^undtr^ 
^nniuerBarij.  of  the  Touniiiig  of  the  tXniucTBit^ . 
In  rommon  uritfi  all  iwfitution^ef  of  learning  inHrafrtra.th«f 
Seminar]!- Qratffullurffoam|£^tiie  iistiu^uishcd  rontributiom? 
tohirh  hoiie  oeen  ma3e  bjTthp  Taculty  and  ©rnduafrjB' of  flie 
Oniver^fe  of  Virginia  to  Icttet^  and  to^rience  anito  the 
kantei)  pofe^^ionjf,  to  commerce  ant  inoustrjiand  oboW 
alltothf  puhhrlife  of  the  Potion. 
Itma^he  reserved  for  an  in^tifution  lihe  ourafnarticullnrlu 
to  reroanite  flmon3the  man^  aloric/  luhiciilhe  Utiioer^itu  of 
XTirglnla  raognropcrlgrhrr^n  asfrcflerfei  b^it;^  di^in^uiihri 
Founder,  the  fart  that  to  oliomna  ^vffferaon.aboucal 
men.thf  Jl^raeriran  people  ij^  indcbteii  for  the  enshrining  of 
(he  principle  of  religioiifi'  liberty  in  the  funiararntd  law  of 
Virginia  and  in  tite  C(on^titution  of  tlieDnitri  States?. 
C(oiujW  unththe  heort^eongratulation??  of  the  mcmberafof 
fhijlScminaru.I  bear  to  vou  tixe  earneot  hope  that  jio'ur 
renotmci  Cmitict^it^.uinc^efcmr  Ip'^rrurc.  majTbe 
granted  etier-increoStng,  opportunities' for  the  promotion 
of  ^otmi  learning,  the  aduonrement  of^Efeience  axsti  the 
maintenance  of  libertjtinthejSet)nittdStat^. 


"^eu3:^ork.'(3>a^31.19^1 


JV^W^ 


r\  J5ctitTg-T'rtBi6rrrt 

(^y  fiecrttarjj 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  41 

Queen's  University 

Professor  Samuel  Alfred  Mitchell 
The  Queen's  University  of  Belfast 

The  Reverend  John  Edgar  Park 
Victoria  University  of  Manchester 

Professor  John  William  Cunlifie 
University  of  Belgrade 

Mrs.  Rosalie  Slaughter  Morton 


Delegates  from  Institutions  in  the  United  States 

Harvard  University 

President  Abbott  Lawrence  Lowell 

Professor  Archibald  Gary  Coolidge 
The  College  of  William  and  Mary 

President  Julian  Alvin  Carroll  Chandler 
Saint  John's  College 

President  Thomas  Fell 
Yale  University 

The  Reverend  Anson  Phelps  Stokes 
American  Philosophical  Society 

Professor  John  Campbell  Merriam 
University  of  Pennsylvania 

Acting-Provost  Josiah  Harmar  Penniman 
Princeton  University 

President  John  Grier  Hibben 

Professor  Thomas  Jefferson  Wertenbaker 
Columbia  University 

Professor  John  Bassett  Moore 
Brown  University 

President  William  Herbert  Perry  Faunce 
Rutgers  College 

President  William  Henry  Steele  Demarest 
Dartmouth  College 

Professor  Douglas  VanderHoof 
American  Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences 

Mr.  Robert  Simpson  Woodward 
Washington  and  Lee  University 

President  Henry  Louis  Smith 


42  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Hampden-Sidney  College 

Professor  James  Shannon  Miller 
The  University  of  the  State  of  New  York 

The  Honorable  Charles  Beatty  Alexander 
University  of  North  Carolina 

President  Harry  Woodbum  Chase 
Bowdoin  College 

The  Honorable  Wallace  Humphrey  White,  Jr. 
Library  of  Congress 

Mr.  Herbert  Putnam 
University  of  South  Carolina 

President  William  Spenser  Currell 
United  States  Military  Academy 

Major  Robert  Henry  Lee 
University  of  Maryland 

Professor  Thomas  Hardy  Taliaferro 

Professor  Gordon  Wilson 
Union  Theological  Seminary,  Virginia 

Professor  Thomas  Cary  Johnson 

Centre  College 
Dean  John  Redd 

The  George  Washington  University 
Professor  Mitchell  Carroll 

Amherst  College 

Professor  William  Jesse  Newlin 

Western  Reserve  University 
Mr.  Robert  Algar  Woolfolk 

Lafayette  College 

President  John  Henry  MacCracken 

Randolph-Macon  College 

President  Robert  Emory  Blackwell 

The  University  of  Richmond 

Professor  Samuel  Chiles  Mitchell 

University  of  Delaware 
President  Walter  HuUihen 

Haverford  College 

President  William  Wistar  Comfort 
Wake  Forest  College 

Professor  Benjamin  Sledd 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  43 

Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York 
President  Arthur  Cushman  McGiffert 

Mount  Holyoke  College 
Professor  Margaret  Shove  Morriss 

University  of  Michigan 

Professor  Morris  Palmer  Tilley 

Mercer  University 

The  Reverend  Henry  Wilson  Battle 

Medical  College  of  Virginia 
Mr.  Eli  Lockert  Bemiss 

University  of  Missouri 
President  Albert  Ross  Hill 
Professor  George  Lefevre 

Virginia  Military  Institute 
Colonel  Hunter  Pendleton 

HoUins  College 

President  Martha  Louisa  Cocke 

The  Citadel 

Colonel  Oliver  James  Bond 

University  of  Mississippi 
Mrs.  Anna  Abbott  McNair 
Professor  Alexander  Lee  Bondurant 

Ohio  Wesleyan  University 
The  Honorable  William  Van  Zandt  Cox 

United  States  Naval  Academy 
Professor  Charles  Alphonso  Smith 

Smithsonian  Institution 
Mr.  Charles  Greeley  Abbot 

The  College  of  the  City  of  New  York 
Professor  Charles  Baskerville 

The  University  of  Wisconsin 
Mr.  Charles  Noble  Gregory 

Roanoke  College 

The  Honorable  Lloyd  Mileham  Robinette 

The  Pennsylvania  State  College 
Professor  Albert  Henry  Tuttle 

The  University  of  the  South 
Professor  Samuel  Marx  Barton 


44  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Vassar  College 

Mrs.  John  Scott  Walker 

Iowa  State  College  of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts 
Brigadier  General  Edward  Albert  Kreger 

National  Academy  of  Sciences 

Rear-Admiral  David  Watson  Taylor 

Swarthmore  College 

Miss  Mary  Elizabeth  Pidgeon 

Gallaudet  College 
Vice-President  Charles  Russell  Ely 

Cornell  University 
Former  President  Jacob  Gould  Schurman 
Professor  Thomas  Leonard  Watson 

Worcester  Polytechnic  Institute 
Mr.  AUerton  Seward  Cushman 

Lehigh  University 

Professor  Harvey  Ernest  Jordan 

University  of  Kentucky 
Professor  Graham  Edgar 

West  Virginia  University 

President  Frank  Butler  Trotter 
Professor  Charles  Edward  Bishop 

Bureau  of  Education 

Professor  George  Frederick  Zook 

The  Johns  Hopkins  University 

President  Frank  Johnson  Goodnow 

University  of  California 

Mr.  Frederick  Leslie  Ransome 

The  Hampton  Normal  and  Agricultural  Institute 
President  James  Edgar  Gregg 

The  University  of  Minnesota 
Dean  Thomas  Poe  Cooper 

The  University  of  Nebraska 

Professor  George  Bernard  Noble 

Purdue  University 

Dean  Charles  Henry  Benjamin 

Boston  University 

Professor  Ralph  Lester  Power 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  45 

The  Ohio  State  University 

Professor  Rosser  Daniel  Bohannan 
Syracuse  University 

Mr.  Clarence  Norton  Goodwin 
University  of  Cincinnati 

President  Frederick  Charles  Hicks 

Professor  Harris  Hancock 
University  of  Arkansas 

President  John  Clinton  Futrall 
Virginia  Polytechnic  Institute 

Professor  John  Edward  Williams 
University  of  Oregon 

Mr.  Clyde  Bruce  Aitchison 
University  of  Nevada 

Mr.  James  Fred  Abel 
Vanderbilt  University 

Professor  Edwin  Mims 
American  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science 

Professor  Samuel  Alfred  Mitchell 

Mississippi  Agricultural  and  Mechanical  College 

Mrs.  Anna  Abbott  McNair 
Bridgewater  College 

Professor  Frank  James  Wright 
University  of  Texas 

Professor  Robert  Emmet  Cofer 

The  John  Slater  Fund 

President  James  Hardy  Dillard 

University  of  South  Dakota 
Mr.  Herbert  Sherman  Houston 

Mississippi  State  College  for  Women 
Mrs.  Anna  Abbott  McNair 
Miss  Emma  Ody  Pohl 

State  Normal  School  for  Women,  Farmville 
President  Joseph  Leonard  Jarman 

Leland  Stanford  Junior  University 
Mr.  Roger  Topp 

The  Jewish  Theological  Seminary  of  America 
Acting-President  Cyrus  Adler 


46  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Catholic  University  of  America 

Dean  Aubrey  Edward  Landry 
National  Geographic  Society 

Judge  Richard  Thomas  Walker  Duke,  Jr. 
Teachers  College 

Professor  William  Heard  Kilpatrick 
Randolph-Macon  Woman's  College 

President  Dice  Robins  Anderson 
Virginia  College 

Miss  Gertrude  Neal 
Sweet  Briar  College 

President  Emilie  Watts  McVea 
Carnegie  Institution  of  Washington 

President  John  Campbell  Merriam 
General  Education  Board 

The  Reverend  Anson  Phelps  Stokes 
University  of  Florida 

Mr.  William  Kenneth  Jackson 
Harrisonburg  State  Normal  School 

Professor  John  Walter  Wayland 

Professor  Raymond  Carlyle  Dingledine 
The  Rice  Institute 

President  Edgar  Odell  Lovett 

Professor  Stockton  Axson 
The  Rockefeller  Foundation 

The  Reverend  Anson  Phelps  Stokes 
Southern  Methodist  University 

Professor  John  Owen  Beaty 
American  Council  on  Education 

Mr.  Samuel  Paul  Capen 


THE   UNVEILING   OF  THE   MEMORIAL  TABLET   TO  WORLD  WAR   HEROES 

Invocation  offered  at  the  Dedication  of  the  Memorial  Tablet  by  Reverend 

Beverley  D.  Tucker,  Jr. 

Almighty  and  everlasting  God  who  art  the  author  and  giver  of  life,  and  who 
in  all  the  ages  past  hast  inspired  the  sons  of  men  with  a  sense  of  their  heri- 
tage to  become  sons  of  God ;  we  yield  Thee  hearty  thanks  for  this  our  Alma 
Mater,  who  under  Thy  divine  guidance  has  been  a  maker  and  molder  of  men. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  47 

We  give  Thee  thanks  for  our  fathers  who,  in  a  former  day,  went  forth 
from  this  place  to  give  their  lives  for  home  and  country.  We  give  Thee 
thanks  for  these  our  brothers  who,  in  this  latter  day,  went  forth  in  this  same 
exalted  spirit  that  freedom  might  not  perish  from  the  earth.  We  commend 
them,  O  God,  to  Thy  fatherly  care  and  protection,  and  pray  that  their 
names  emblazoned  here  may  shine  in  our  hearts  as  the  stars  forever,  that  the 
cause  for  which  they  died  may  yet  through  us  prevail. 

O  Thou  strong  Father  of  all  nations,  draw  all  Thy  great  family  together 
with  an  increasing  sense  of  our  common  blood  and  destiny,  that  peace  may 
come  on  earth  at  last,  and  Thy  sun  may  shed  forth  its  light  rejoicing  on  a 
holy  brotherhood  of  peoples. 

We  ask  it  all  in  the  name  of  Him,  who  is  the  perfect  Son  of  Man  and 
the  eternal  Prince  of  Peace,  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.     Amen. 


REMARKS  OF  THE  PRESIDING  OFFICER,  LIEUTENANT  COLONEL  CUTCHINS 

(Introducing  Captain  Barksdale) 

It  is  a  beautiful  and  an  inspiring  thought  that  the  first  assembly  of  the 
alumni  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  returning  to  celebrate  the  completion 
of  Alma  Mater's  one  hundred  years  of  service  to  State  and  Nation,  should 
be  for  the  purpose  of  doing  honor  to,  and  perpetuating  the  memory  of,  those 
former  students  of  the  University  who  gave  their  lives  in  order  that  the 
ideals  for  which  their  Alma  Mater  always  had  stood  might  endure,  and  who, 
by  their  death,  exemplified  the  daily  teachings  and  the  loftiest  traditions  of 
this  University. 

No  graver  charge  can  be  lodged  against  any  country  than  that  it  is  un- 
grateful to  those  who  have  fallen  in  its  defense,  or  neglectful  of  the  obligation 
to  perpetuate  their  memory.  That  the  names  of  those  immortal  sons  of 
Virginia  who  willingly  have  given  their  lives  in  order  that  that  civilization, 
for  which  the  University  of  Virginia  has  stood  for  a  century,  might  be  per- 
petuated for  unnumbered  centuries  yet  to  come,  shall  not  go  unrecorded  and 
unhonored,  is  due  to  the  zeal,  the  loyalty  and  the  patriotism  of  the  classes 
of  191 8,  1 9 19,  1920,  and  of  the  Seven  Society.  Those  classes  and  that 
society  have  earned  not  only  the  thanks  of  the  great  body  of  the  alumni, 
but  they  have  earned  as  well  the  thanks  of  the  countless  thousands  of  Vir- 
ginia students  who  in  the  years  that  are  to  come  will  walk  these  paths,  and, 
walking  here,  will  stop  to  read  the  names  of  that  immortal  company,  and, 
reading,  will  be  inspired  to  go  forth  and  so  conduct  themselves  in  the  world 
of  men  that  the  cause  of  civilization  may  be  advanced,  and  that  they  too, 
in  time,  may  merit  and  win  the  thanks  of  Alma  Mater. 


48  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

One  indeed  treads  upon  sacred  ground  when  one  attempts  to  interpret 
to  the  living  the  voices  or  the  wishes  of  those  who  have  passed  beyond,  but 
I  make  bold  to  say  that  if  that  silent  company  who  are  to-day  bivouacked 
"on  fame's  eternal  camping  ground"  could  give  expression  to  their  sen- 
timents, they  would  bid  me  say  that  it  is  a  source  of  satisfaction  to  them  that 
this  Tablet  Memorial  is  to  be  presented  in  their  honor  by  one  who  himself 
has  inhaled  the  smoke  of  battle,  one  who  himself  has  engaged  in  hand  to 
hand  conflict  with  the  foe,  and  one  who  has  borne  the  seemingly  endless 
vigil  of  the  long  nights  before  the  days  of  battle. 

That  my  old  comrade  of  the  29th  Division,  who  will  present  this  beauti- 
ful tablet  to-day,  meets  fully  those  requirements  I  personally  can  testify. 
Nor  need  I  give  personal  testimony,  for  the  government  of  the  United  States 
has  recognized  that  fact  officially,  by  awarding  him  the  Distinguished  Ser- 
vice Cross  for  three  separate  acts  of  exceptional  gallantry  on  three  different 
days  of  battle. 

It  is  therefore  with  much  pleasure  that  I  present  Captain  Alfred  Dickin- 
son Barksdale,  who  now  will  present  this  Tablet  Memorial  to  the  University 
of  Virginia. 


ADDRESS  OF  CAPTAIN  A.  D.  BARKSDALE,  PRESENTING  THE  MEMORIAL  TABLET 

Thousands  of  miles  away  upon  the  friendly  bosom  of  a  sister  republic 
lie  these  heroic  sons  of  Alma  Mater.  Filled  with  the  loftiest  ideals  known  to 
mankind  these  modern  Argonauts  sailed  three  thousand  miles  to  engage  in 
the  mightiest  conflict  since  the  creation,  and  with  their  fellows  they  cast 
their  deciding  weight  into  the  balance  on  the  side  of  humanity. 

In  that  vast  cataclysm  which  so  recently  enveloped  the  earth  many 
there  were  who  made  sacrifices,  who  gave  of  their  time,  of  their  means,  of 
their  blood — but  these  have  given  their  all;  they  have  given  their  lives. 
Only  a  few  short  years  have  passed  since  they  in  the  fullness  of  their  strong 
young  manhood  were  capable  of  standing  here  as  we  stand  and  feeling  that 
thrill  which  contact  with  this  noble  old  Jeffersonian  structure  always  in- 
spires. It  seems  as  if  it  were  but  yesterday  when  they  moved  among  us, 
and  made  life  brighter  by  their  presence.  But  to-day  their  places  are  vacant 
and  we  are  gathered  to  honor  their  memory.  From  far  and  near  we  have 
gathered  to  print  their  names  in  everlasting  bronze  upon  the  walls  of  this 
Rotunda.  But  nothing  that  we  do  here  or  can  ever  do  will  add  anything  to 
their  glory.  Their  names  have  been  ineradicably  enrolled  upon  the  great 
American  Roll  of  Honor.  Those  of  us  who  knew  them  will  always  bear  their 
memory  fresh  in  our  hearts  until  we  are  called  over  yonder.  But  our  days 
are  numbered  and  as  we  grow  old  and  fulfill  our  allotted  span  we  shall  wither 


Tablet  Memorial  Unveiled  on  Second  Day  of  Centennial 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  49 

as  the  grass.  "They  shall  grow  not  old,  as  we  that  are  left  grow  old;  age 
shall  not  weary  them  nor  the  years  condemn.  At  the  going  down  of  the  sun 
and  in  the  morning  we  will  remember  them."  When  we  are  gone  genera- 
tions yet  unborn  will  honor  them.  I  know  of  no  more  priceless  heritage  to 
one  entering  these  portals  than  to  be  able  to  point  to  this  tablet  and  say, 
"I  am  descended  from  one  of  these." 

In  the  early  days  just  after  America  had  aligned  herself  upon  the  side 
of  freedom  and  right,  throughout  the  land  there  was  a  feeling  of  uncertainty 
whether  or  not  we  Americans  untried  in  war  were  capable  of  withstanding 
the  fierce  onslaught  of  the  Hun.  The  whole  world  stood  anxiously  watching 
to  see  how  Americans  would  stand  the  test.  How  they  went  through  their 
trial  by  battle,  how  they  underwent  their  baptism  of  fire  is  now  writ  large 
upon  the  glorious  pages  of  the  history  of  the  world.  And  we  are  gathered 
here  to-day  to  place  upon  the  walls  of  our  University  the  names  of  her  sons 
who  gave  their  all  that  their  country's  honor  should  be  unsullied  and  to 
show  the  world  that  Americans  could  still  die  for  their  country. 

Since  we  cannot  fathom  the  infinite  we  can  never  know  why  the  grim 
reaper  as  he  stalked  over  the  battlefields  and  army  camps  chose  these. 
Sometimes  it  seems  as  if  it  were  all  wrong ;  that  only  the  best  were  taken ; 
that  there  must  have  been  some  great  mistake  somewhere  up  in  the  infinite. 
But  I  think  not.  One  night  on  the  bank  of  the  Meuse  just  after  dusk,  when 
the  guns  were  roaring  and  the  shells  were  crashing  everywhere,  and  the 
whole  world  seemed  in  an  uproar  and  confusion,  I  chanced  to  turn  my  eyes 
upward  and  in  the  heavenly  firmament  above,  countless  myriads  of  stars 
shone  down  upon  the  earth  beneath ;  each  one  in  its  accustomed  place  un- 
moved, unperturbed  and  imperturbable.  Then  over  me  surged  the  con- 
sciousness that  somewhere  there  was  a  Supreme  Being  who  ruled  over  the 
battlefield,  who  guided  the  destinies  of  mankind,  and  directed  everything 
according  to  His  infinite  plan,  and  although  at  times  it  seems  that  since  the 
war  both  nations  and  people  have  grown  more  selfish  and  subject  to  petty 
jealousies,  surely  such  sacrifices  could  not  have  been  for  naught.  If  we  keep 
faith  with  those  who  lie  beneath  the  poppies,  surely  the  world  will  be  a  better 
place  because  of  their  sacrifices. 

It  was  my  privilege  to  serve  with  one  of  those  whose  names  are  written 
on  this  tablet,  Robert  Young  Conrad.  In  a  few  minutes  his  daughter,  who 
has  never  known  the  depth  of  her  father's  love  and  whose  little  body  will 
never  be  held  in  her  father's  strong  arms,  will  assist  in  the  unveiling.  To- 
gether we  marched  through  the  black  night  of  October  7,  1918,  to  our  posi- 
tion in  advance  of  the  French  lines  from  whence  we  were  to  attack  at  dawn. 
The  gloomy,  drizzly  night  which  disspirited  many  rather  heightened  than 
dampened  his  spirits.  "The  very  night  for  us,  "  he  said,  "we  can  get  ready 
without  being  observed."    Arrived  at  our  position  we  lay  down  for  a  few 


50  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

hours'  rest  on  the  wet  hillside.  Before  the  first  rays  of  morning  light  he 
called  to  me  that  it  was  time  to  place  our  troops  in  order  of  battle.  As  the 
day  slowly  broke  I  could  hear  him  calling  to  his  men  and  placing  them  in 
their  respective  positions.  At  dawn  the  roar  of  our  barrage  and  the  shrieks 
of  the  shells  overhead  burst  upon  our  ears.  At  zero  hour  he  moved  off  in  the 
midst  of  his  men  and  I  could  hear  him  calling  to  them  with  words  of  en- 
couragement and  cheer.  When  the  shells  of  the  enemy's  counter  barrage 
began  to  fall  I  could  see  him  here,  there  and  everywhere  strengthening  and 
encouraging  his  men.  Finally  he  disappeared  over  a  hill  and  I  never  saw 
him  again.  Hearing  that  one  of  his  platoons  had  been  halted  by  a  murderous 
machine  gun  fire,  without  a  moment's  hesitation  he  hastened  to  lead  them 
in  the  charge  and  fell  mortally  wounded.  He  was  carried  unconscious  to 
the  rear  and  died  in  the  little  village  of  Glorieux,  near  Verdun.  Aye,  at 
Glorieux,  he  met  death  gloriously. 

It  would  take  too  long  to  recount  the  daring  and  unselfish  exploits  of 
all  of  them,  but  whether  they  were  called  when  soaring  above  the  clouds  as 
Jim  McConnell  or  while  in  the  execution  of  some  more  prosaic  task,  in  the 
death  of  each  one  of  them  surely  there  is  a  glory  incomparable.  Free  from 
all  that  is  mean  and  petty  they  went  to  meet  their  Creator  inspired  by  the 
noblest  impulses  known  to  mankind.  They  were  taken  at  the  high  tide,  at  a 
point  where  regard  for  self  sunk  into  nothingness,  and  devotion  to  the  cause 
reigned  supreme.  "Don't  bother  with  me,  go  ahead,"  murmured  one  of 
them  with  his  last  conscious  breath. 

Although  they  loved  life  they  did  not  fear  death.  Doubtless  all  of  us 
when  filled  with  the  romance  of  youth  have  read  with  bated  breath  of  heroes 
who  met  death  with  a  smile  and  wondered  what  sort  of  divine  clay  they 
were  molded  of.  But  we  need  wonder  no  longer,  for  here  is  the  roll  of  Vir- 
ginia's sons,  our  brothers,  in  whom  were  inculcated  the  principles  of  right 
and  justice  and  duty,  so  that  when  the  call  came,  they  did  not  hesitate  but 
hastened  cheerfully  to  lay  down  their  lives,  and  if  they  had  any  regret  it 
was  for  those  they  loved  and  left  behind. 

Death  is  always  a  solemn  thing  and  perforce  sad,  but  for  these,  our 
fallen  comrades,  we  should  repress  our  tears  and  rather  let  our  souls  swell 
with  pride  in  the  glorious  heritage  they  have  bequeathed  to  their  Alma 
Mater.  No  one  of  these  generous  unselfish  souls  would  ever  wish  sorrowful 
tears  shed  for  him.  I  believe  that  Alan  Seeger,  that  valiant  American  who 
also  lies  over  there,  expressed  the  wish  of  each  of  these  when  he  said : 

"Honor  them  not  so  much  with  tears  and  flowers, 
But  you  with  whom  the  sweet  fulfilment  lies. 
Where  in  the  anguish  of  atrocious  hours 

Turned  their  last  thoughts  and  closed  their  dying  eyes, 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  51 

"Rather  when  music  on  bright  gatherings  lays 
Its  tender  spell,  and  joy  is  uppermost, 
Be  mindful  of  the  men  they  were,  and  raise 
Your  glasses  to  them  in  one  silent  toast." 

Mr.  Rector,  we  present  to  you  for  the  University  this  tablet  "in  memory 
of  the  sons  of  this  University,  who  gave  their  lives  for  freedom  in  the  World 
War."  May  its  presence  here  always  be  an  inspiration  to  Virginia's  sons 
and  may  it  stand  forever  as  a  proof  that  amongst  the  sons  of  this  University 
'tis  counted  a  glorious  thing  to  die  for  one's  Country. 


ADDRESS  BY  JOHN  STEWART  BRYAN,  RECTOR  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY,  ACCEPTING 

THE  TABLET 

On  this  porch,  a  Httle  more  than  half  a  century  ago,  were  gathered 
students  in  whose  ears  still  sounded  the  drums  and  tramplings  of  the  War 
Between  the  States. 

There,  in  graven  bronze,  are  five  hundred  and  fifty  names  of  those  who 
marched  forth  under  the  flag  of  Virginia,  and  died  in  the  defense  of  their 
homes.  Here  are  the  memorials  to  their  fourscore  younger  brothers  who  in 
their  day  and  generation  heard  the  shrill  bugle,  and  gladly  followed  the  call 
of  duty. 

The  sad  sagacity  of  age  has  taught  us  that  nothing  built  with  hands 
can  "hold  out  against  the  wreckful  siege  of  battering  days,"  and  yet  we 
place  this  tablet  on  the  walls  of  this  century-old  Rotunda  in  response  to  a 
wish  that  lies  deep  in  the  heart  of  humanity.  That  desire  to  enshrine  beloved 
memory  beyond  the  changes  and  chances  of  time  is  one  that  has  come  to  all 
men  everywhere.  Every  heart  has  its  inner  shrine.  To  the  university's 
great  altar  we  bring  to-day  this  frail  barrier  against  the  engulfing  tides  of 
oblivion.  Size  is  not  the  measure  of  our  memorial.  The  Pyramids  of  the 
Nile  have  no  such  spiritual  import  as  the  most  obscure  cross  in  Flanders 
field.  And  who  can  compute  the  power  that  gave  this  tablet  its  long  roll  of 
the  Knights  of  the  University,  the  champions  of  pure  liberty,  the  Galahads 
of  pure  manhood? 

When  those  boys  were  bom,  the  possibility  of  international  conflict 
belonged  to  the  limbo  of 

"  Old,  unhappy,  far-off  things. 
And  battles  long  ago:  " 

and  war  seemed  as  far  removed  from  the  peaceful  course  of  their  lives  as 
volcanoes  are  from  the  calm  Blue  Ridge.  As  those  young  men  grew  up,  they 
saw  nearly  one  half  of  our  revenue  being  spent  for  works  of  peace,  and  now 
95%  is  poured  out  for  war,  past,  present  and  to  come. 


52  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

What  was  it  in  those  boys  that  throbbed  in  response  to  the  drumming 
guns?  Why  was  it  then  that  those  boys  heard  in  these  quiet  shades  the 
blare  of  the  war  trumpet,  when  older  and  wiser  heads  still  dreamt  ot  peace? 
What  was  it  that  called  into  instant  action  their  aptitude  for  command  and 
their  instinct  for  war?  It  was  the  glorious  atavism  in  the  blood  of  men 
whose  fathers  and  forefathers  endured  pain,  darkness  and  cold  at  Valley 
Forge,  or  stormed  the  heights  of  Chapultepec,  or  set  new  standards  for  mili- 
tary genius  and  personal  bravery  at  Chancellorsville  and  Gettysburg.  The 
blood  that  gave  that  type  is  coursing  in  the  veins  of  Virginia.  The  inspira- 
tion that  controlled  those  lives  is  still  potent. 

Experience  could  have  seen  that  those  great  spirits  needed  but  the 
revealing  touch  of  death's  finger  to  show  that  like  their  elder  brothers  of 
Virginia  blood  they,  too,  when 

"Stumbling  on  the  brink  of  sudden  opportunity. 
Would  choose  the  only  noble,  God-like,  splendid  way!" 

Heredity  alone  will  not  explain  the  achievements  of  these  sons  of  the 
University.  It  was  blood,  yes,  but  it  was  training;  it  was  heredity,  but 
heredity  developed  by  environment;  it  was  the  soul  of  the  South  and  the 
traditions  of  the  University  of  Virginia  that  made  perfect  those  gentlemen 
unafraid.  It  was  not  the  Prussian  drill  master,  but  the  Virginia  school 
master,  that  inspired  those  students  and  fortified  their  souls  and  liberated 
their  intellect.  Those  boys  lived  in  the  last  unpoliced  institution  on  earth. 
No  guardian  was  set  over  them  here  at  the  University,  except  the  guardian 
of  conscience ;  they  were  tried  and  tested  by  the  unwritten  code  of  gentlemen ; 
they  were  electrified  by  the  powerful  spiritual  currents  that  flow  unimpeded 
through  the  halls  and  arcades  of  this  great  school.  No  law  bound  them 
except  the  law  of  honor,  and  by  their  lives,  as  by  their  death,  they  proved 
again  that  an  ideal  is  not  only  the  most  noble,  but  also  the  most  useful 
possession  that  an  institution  may  give  or  a  nation  receive.  They  had 
eaten  the  bread  of  Virginia  in  which  lived  transubstantiated  the  soul  and 
body  of  the  whole  nation.  They  found  that  to  be  a  gentleman  was  at  once 
the  crown  and  the  sanction  of  life,  and  they  showed  by  their  willingness  to 
die  that  the  certainty  of  sacrifice  is  the  guerdon  of  greatness. 

The  glory  that  radiates  from  that  tablet  ig  the  glory  of  the  spirit  of  the 
University  of  Virginia.  The  shining  faces  of  those  sacred  dead  have  caught 
the  light  of  honor,  and  that  flame  will  never  perish  from  the  earth  while  the 
memory  of  their  deeds  endures. 

Nor  is  the  radiance  theirs  alone.  Its  light  is  upon  us,  too,  for  we  who 
stand  here  this  afternoon  are  in  a  very  real  sense  members  of  that  mystical 
body  of  Virginians  who,  living  and  dead,  have  fashioned  the  soul  of  this 
Commonwealth.    By  ties  of  blood,  by  the  unifying  influence  of  race  and 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  53 

tradition,  by  the  welding  force  of  a  common  ideal,  by  the  impress  of  the 
same  youthful  enthusiasm  awakened  and  amplified  at  the  University,  our 
hearts  are  one  with  theirs.  We  grasp  with  an  appreciation  that  far  tran- 
scends any  power  of  reason  what  it  was  that  made  their  lives  luminous  and 
their  deaths  not  in  vain. 

We  dedicate  this  tablet,  and  with  swelling  throats  and  uplifted  hearts 
we  turn  again  to  the  common  tasks  of  daily  life.  That  bronze  memorial 
stands  immobile  and  silent ;  of  itself  it  can  do  nothing ;  it  is  we  alone,  and  our 
lives  alone,  that  can  make  it  a  vitalizing  force.  It  is  we,  and  we  alone, 
professors,  alumni,  students  and  citizens,  who  can  surcharge  that  noble 
scroll  with  an  ever  renewing  energy.  And  this  we  can  do  by  so  living  that 
the  spirit  of  those  youths  shall  never  be  a  stranger  in  these  halls.  For  only 
the  souls  of  the  living  can  make  and  keep  the  University  a  congenial  home 
for  the  souls  of  the  dead. 

This  is  no  easy  task.  Our  right  to  claim  companionship  with  those 
shining  exemplars  must  be  won  in  conflict  with  the  hosts  of  darkness,  even 
as  theirs  was  won.  In  the  reeking  trenches  of  France,  in  sweating  camps, 
and  silent  hospitals,  across  barbed-wire,  and  under  the  whirlwind  of  shrapnel 
or  the  thunderclap  of  T.  N.  T.,  the  sons  of  the  University  won  their  right  to 
be  brothers  in  arms  with  the  mighty  men  of  all  ages,  who,  from  Thermopylae 
to  Chateau-Thierry 

"Had  done  their  work  and  held  their  peace. 
And  had  no  fear  to  die!" 

Many  of  us  were  not  in  uniform.  Oh,  never  mind  the  reason,  for  each 
heart  knew  its  own  bitterness  when  the  angel  with  the  flaming  sword  passed 
by ;  but  all  of  us  can  be  brothers  in  spirit  with  those  whose  virtues  we  revere, 
and  whose  names  we  commemorate  to-day.  Like  them,  we  can  face  our 
duty  without  flinching;  like  them  we  know  what  high  adventure  America 
sought  in  entering  the  war,  and  for  them,  as  for  ourselves,  we  can  repel  the 
base  slander  that  America  made  her  stupendous  effort  not  to  save  her  soul, 
but  to  save  her  skin ! 

It  is  not  the  expenditure  of  Forty  Billions;  it  is  not  the  long  rows  of 
75,640  silent  dead  that  sleep  in  Belleau  Woods  and  elsewhere  in  France, 
that  mark  the  full  extent  of  the  price  we  paid.  Ah,  no !  America's  contribu- 
tion is  not  in  shot-torn  troops,  but  in  shattered  ideals ;  our  loss  is  not  in  men 
and  money,  but  in  morale  and  faith.  And  the  mere  fact  that  such  a  calumny 
on  the  ideals  of  a  great  nation  could  be  uttered  by  an  ambassador  who  has 
continued  unrebuked  at  his  post  is  evidence  enough  that  what  America  is 
suffering  from  is  not  poverty  of  goods,  but  destitution  of  spirit. 

And  this  tablet  we  dedicate  to-day — if  we  ourselves  do  not  keep  faith 
with  those  who  died  for  the  soul  of  America — will  not  be  a  memorial,  but  a 


54  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

mockery  and  if  we  are  not  baptized  with  the  baptism  of  those  we  commemo- 
rate, we  will  stand  not  as  brothers,  but  as  blasphemers  before 

"That  splendid  fame  this  tablet  watches  o'er 
Their  wars  behind  them,  God's  great  peace  before!" 

The  souls  of  those  men  are  here,  radiant  with  imperishable  glory,  leading 
the  way  with  strong  exulting  wing  where  we,  with  slow  tread,  must  follow. 

How  shall  we  name  them  all,  and  how  shall  we  discriminate  among 
those  equals  in  valor  of  purpose  and  fortitude  of  execution?  We  cannot 
choose  or  pick  among  that  chivalry — when  all  are  calling  to  us  to  "  Be  true 
to  the  nation,  be  true  to  Virginia,  be  true  to  the  spirit  of  the  University, " — 
and  by  God's  good  grace,  we  will! 

REMARKS  OF  THE   PRESIDING  OFFICER,    COL.    CUTCHINS,    INTRODUCING  THE 

FRENCH  AMBASSADOR 

As  long  as  memory  lasts,  and  whenever  men  and  women  shall  gather 
together  in  any  part  of  the  world  for  the  purpose  of  memorializing  the  names 
or  the  deeds  of  those  who  participated  in  the  World  War,  there  is  one  name 
that,  above  all  others,  will  be  in  every  mind — the  name  of  France — France, 
glorious  and  immortal ! 

On  the  beloved  soil  of  our  own  Virginia  there  are  scars,  long  since  healed, 
that  mark  the  burial  places  of  soldiers  of  France  who  stood  shoulder  to 
shoulder  with  the  soldiers  of  America  when  America  was  fighting  for  her 
liberty  and  for  her  existence  as  a  nation ;  on  the  sacred  soil  of  France  there  are 
scars,  not  yet  healed,  that  mark  the  burying  places  of  countless  thousands 
of  the  sons  of  America  who  laid  down  their  lives  more  than  a  century  later  to 
preserve  not  only  the  liberty  and  the  national  life  of  France,  but  to  preserve 
civilization  as  well.  These  scars  indicate  ties  which  neither  time  nor  circum- 
stances can  sever. 

It  is  indeed  a  happy  coincidence  that  to  this  memorable  ceremony  at 
the  University  of  Virginia,  founded  by  Jefferson  who,  afterwards,  was  sent 
as  an  ambassador  of  the  United  States  to  France,  there  has  come  the  dis- 
tinguished Ambassador  of  France  to  the  United  States,  to  do  honor  to  the 
memory  of  those  sons  of  Virginia  who  have  fallen  in  the  greatest  cause  for 
which  man  ever  has  fought.  He  has  graciously  consented  to  express  to  us 
the  sentiments  of  his  countrymen  on  this  occasion. 

I  have  the  honor  and  the  pleasure  to  present  His  Excellency,  M.  Jusser- 
and,  the  distinguished  Ambassador  of  France  to  the  United  States. 

[Note  by  the  Editor. — ^As  the  eloquent  address  of  Ambassador  Jusserand 
was  entirely  extemporaneous,  it  was,  unfortunately,  not  reported.  The 
Ambassador  very  graciously  consented  to  speak  at  the  last  minute  in  the 
absence  of  M.  Gabriel  Hanotaux  who  had  hoped  to  be  present.] 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  55 

THE  CENTENNIAL  PAGEANT 

THE  SHADOW  OF  THE  BUILDER 
By  Mrs.  Frances  O.  J.  Gaither 

Foreword 

W.  M.  Forrest, 
Chairman,  Pageant  Committee. 

This  pageant  is  the  farthest  possible  remove  from  the  historical  pageant 
that  seeks  to  visualize  the  development  of  an  institution  by  a  series  of 
tableaux  or  floats  reflecting  various  important  episodes  of  its  life.  It  has 
also  chosen  another  way  to  reflect  the  spiritual  element  of  the  University's 
life  than  by  the  insertion  in  the  pageant  of  allegorical  interludes,  or  by  an 
accompanying  masque.  It  is  a  narrative  of  the  way  that  Thomas  Jefferson 
planned  his  University,  both  the  body  of  it  and  the  soul  of  it.  About  the 
struggle  to  get  nothing  but  the  best  builded  into  the  material  structure  of 
the  University  there  is  woven  a  simple  but  compelling  drama.  Nerving  the 
great  dreamer  to  make  no  compromise  with  the  people  who  wanted  some- 
thing cheap  and  quickly  put  to  work,  nor  with  his  own  ardent  desire  to  see 
the  University  open  and  at  its  task,  were  his  visions  of  the  young  life  yet  to 
throng  its  colonnades. 

So  into  the  story  of  a  single  day  in  the  University's  opening  history 
the  author  of  the  pageant  has  packed  all  the  hopes,  and  dreams,  and  struggles 
leading  up  to  that  day,  and  all  the  fruition  of  those  hopes  and  dreams  and 
struggles  flowing  down  through  a  century  of  life.  It  was  the  day  when 
Lafayette  was  entertained  at  the  unfinished  University  upon  his  return,  in 
old  age,  to  the  land  to  which  in  youth  his  sword  had  helped  to  give  freedom. 
It  was  also  the  day  upon  which  the  Father  of  the  University  was  confronted 
by  the  fact  that  his  determination  to  have  nothing  but  the  best  for  his  build- 
ings involved  another  long  delay,  a  new  struggle  with  popular  opposition 
and  with  the  legislature  to  get  more  money.  At  every  crisis  of  the  debate 
with  himself  and  others  over  this  matter  during  the  long  day,  compromise 
was  made  impossible  to  Jefferson  by  the  visions  he  saw  of  youth — beautiful, 
ardent,  truth  seeking,  honor  loving,  joyous,  sacrificial  youth,  as  it  yet  should 
live  and  be  trained  in  the  University.  And  so  the  decision  to  have  his 
capitals  of  Carrara  marble  ended  his  struggle,  and  forever  determined  that 
his  University  would  content  itself  with  no  less  than  the  best,  cost  what  it 
may. 

That  the  dreams  of  the  old  philosopher  should  be  expressed  in  terms  of 
Greek  life  is  fitting.  From  classical  architecture  he  drew  inspiration  for  his 
buildings.  The  democracies  of  the  Greek  cities  helped  him  in  all  his  work 
and  hopes  for  a  free  people.    The  untrammeled  soul  of  Socrates  gave  him  an 


56  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

ideal  for  the  professors  of  his  new  temple  of  learning,  and  the  beauty  loving, 
truth  seeking  youths  of  Athens  were  such  men  as  he  fain  would  see  crowding 
the  colonnades  and  pavilions  of  his  own  athenaeum. 

As  the  alumni  and  friends  of  the  University  of  Virginia  watch  the 
unfolding  of  this  pageant-drama  they  will  not  find  its  artistic  harmony 
marred  by  any  intrusion  of  historical  scenes,  such  as  the  meeting  wherein 
the  honor  system  was  inaugurated  by  faculty  and  students,  nor  the  marching 
away  of  the  student  soldiers  of  1861  or  1917,  nor  yet  of  the  athletic  struggles 
nor  the  Easter  time  festivities  of  their  college  days.  Yet  in  looking  upon  the 
scenes  wherein  Socrates  and  his  pupils  discourse  of  the  ideals  of  youth,  and 
the  young  men,  in  solemn  ceremonial  before  the  altar,  consecrate  themselves 
to  honor  and  truth,  there  must  stir  anew  in  the  heart  of  every  beholder 
that  passion  for  truth  and  honor  which  has  been  the  soul  of  the  University 
throughout  its  century  of  life.  And  in  song  and  dance  to  the  accompani- 
ment of  martial  music  will  be  revived  again  the  memories  of  those  days 
when  the  men  of  the  University  met  the  acid  test  of  patriotism  and  went 
forth  to  battle  and  to  die  upon  the  fields  of  Virginia  and  of  France. 

Likewise  will  the  echoes  of  bygone  athletic  combats  and  the  festal 
strains  of  far-off  Easter  and  Finals'  revels  resound  in  the  corridors  of  memory 
as  the  dream  figures  of  the  pageant  strive  for  the  mastery,  and  mingle  in 
their  dances  of  youth  and  love.  Nor  will  any  fail  to  catch  the  vision  into  the 
true  heart  of  youth  flashing  out  from  those  scenes  where  the  lads,  engaged 
in  high  converse  upon  truth  and  the  dedication  of  life  to  art  and  philosophy, 
to  toil  and  battle,  are  instantly  diverted  to  dancing  and  revelry  by  the  sight 
of  their  "Helen  of  a  thousand  dreams." 

It  was  a  far  cry  from  that  scene  a  hundred  years  ago  where  Jefferson 
struggled  for  the  best  for  his  University  to  the  moment  when  that  University 
gave  to  the  cause  of  world  freedom  its  many  valiant  sons.  But  it  all  seems 
shadowed  forth  amid  the  rising  walls  of  a  new  temple  of  learning  and  freedom 
when  Jefferson  and  Lafayette  met  and  the  flags  of  America  and  France 
mingled.  None  then  could  see  when  the  khaki  clad  hosts  of  America  would 
speak  through  the  lips  of  their  commander  to  the  spirit  of  the  old  Marquis 
of  France  saying, ' '  Lafayette,  we  are  here. ' '  But  a  Jefferson  could  know  that 
his  athenaeum,  for  which  nought  but  the  true  and  the  good  would  suffice, 
would  not  fail  to  have  ready,  in  every  hour  of  the  world's  need,  heroes  of 
peace  and  heroes  of  war  whose  service  would  be  all  the  more  whole-hearted 
because  they  had  whistled  and  danced  and  sung  while  pursuing  truth  and 
honor  amid  the  cloisters  and  colonnades  of  the  University  of  Virginia. 

Overture  and  Interludes  composed  by  Mr.  John  Powell. 

Music  for  Songs,  composed  by  Mr.  George  Harris,  Jr. 

Solo  and  Duet  Dances,  composed  by  Mr.  Alexander  Oumansky. 


Scenes  on  the  Moving  Picture  Screen  from  the  University's  Early  History 

I.  (Upper  left)  Alumni  Secretary  Crenshaw  Directing  Scenes 

3.  (Upper  right)  Italian  Workmen  Carving  a  Capital 

3.  (Center)  Jefferson  and  LaFayette  Pledge  Each  the  Other's  Health 

4.  (Lower  left)  Laying  of  the  Corner-stone 

5.  (Lower  right)  Making  the  Confederate  Flag 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 


57 


Director  of  Pageant  and  Composer  of  Group  Dances,  Miss  Emma  Ody  Pohl. 
Assistant  Director,  Miss  Grace  Dorothy  Massengale. 
Dramatic  Director,  Mr.  William  Harrison  Faulkner. 
Musical  Director,  Mr.  Arthur  Fickenscher. 

Music  by  the  Washington  Concert  Orchestra.     Conductor,  Mr.  Herman 
Rakemann. 

The  Cast 

Jefferson Mr.  William  Mentzel  Forrest 

Cornelia,  his  granddaughter Miss  Gladys  Gunter 

Lafayette Mr.  William  Hall  Goodwin 

Cabell 

Madison,  ex-President  of 

the  United  States 
Monroe,  President  of  the 


United  States 


Vistors  of 

the 
University 


.  Mr.  George  Oscar  Ferguson,  Jr. 
Mr.  Robert  Henning  Webb 


.Mr.  George  Bordman  Eager,  Jr. 


Raggi,  an  Italian  stone-carver Mr.  Francis  Harris  Abbot 

Brockenbrough,  the  proctor Mr.  Bruce  WiUiams 

Gorman,  a  workman Mr.  Henning  Cunningham  Nelms 

A  Voter Mr.  John  Jennings  Luck 

Workmen 

People  of  Virginia  ^    ,.  ,         , 

Local  Dignitaries     ^  ^^^'^^  ^^^  gentlemen  of  the  community 

Staff  of  Lafayette 


Ph/EDRUS,  a  youth Mr.  Staige  Davis  Blackford 

Lysis,  his  comrade Mr.  Dorsey  Bland 

Socrates Mr.  Richard  Heath  Dabney 

An  Athenian  Girl Miss  Nina  Weeden  Oliver 

A  Priestess Mrs.  Sylvia  Faulkner 

Miss  Augusta  Alexander Miss  Emily  Massengale 

Miss  Daphne  Baggett Miss  Katharine  McGrath 

Miss  Frances  Bahin Miss  Hettie  Newell 

Dancers  \  Miss  Belle  Bond Miss  Rebecca  Pegues 

Miss  Marguerite  Briscoe Miss  Edith  Reid 

Miss  Josephine  Campbell Miss  Eola  Williams 

Miss  Eugenia  Howell Miss  Frances  Woodward 


Maidens 

Temple  Attendants 
Flute  Players 
Men  of  Athens 
A  Host  of  Youths 


,  Young  ladies  of  the  community 


Students  of  the  University 


58  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

THE  SHADOW  OF  THE  BUILDER 


Prelude 
High  buildings,  drenched  with  light,  flank  an  amphitheatre  where, 
to  festival  music,  gather  the  alumni  of  the  University  of  Virginia.  Beyond 
a  green  lawn  dimly  shows  the  fagade  of  a  low  building.  When  the  people 
have  assembled,  the  music  changes,  the  lights  all  about  grow  dim,  and  the 
fagade  ahead  whitens  into  beauty.  Against  it  forms  with  increasing  distinct- 
ness, the  shadow  of  the  Gait  statue  of  Thomas  Jefferson.  And  then  the 
shadow  fades,  leaving  only  its  pedestal,  a  real,  unfinished  Corinthian  capital 
of  coarse  stone. 

{Across  the  lawn  come  workmen.    They  fall  to  work;  and  as  they  pound 
their  hammers  and  scrape  their  trowels,  they  sing:) 

If  the  walls  shall  be  true, 
Then  the  stones  must  be  true ; 

And  each  on  its  fellow  be  laid 
By  a  hand  that  is  skilled 
Heeding  eyes  that  are  filled 

With  faith  in  the  house  to  be  made. 


Refrain 

Blow  upon  blow,  blow  upon  blow, 
Build  toward  bending  skies. 

Stone  upon  stone,  stone  upon  stone, 
Lofty  the  columns  rise. 


If  the  house  shall  be  fair. 
Then  the  walls  must  be  fair ; 

And  each  one  in  beauty  must  stand. 
Crowned  with  cornices  white, 
Pierced  with  portals  alight. 

That  house  will  give  grace  to  the  land. 
(Gorman,  a  workman  of  great  stature,  coming  up  from  the  lawn,  goes 
to  the  blunt,  half-shaped  capital  and  inspects  it  in  mock  appreciation.) 

GORMAN 

Copied  right  out  of  one  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  pretty  picture-books,  every 
leaf  curled  just  so. 

A  WORKMAN 

(Laying  down  his  trowel  and  smiling  sarcastically.) 
But  Signor  Raggi  is  an  artist,  Gorman.     He's  no  clumsy  American 
stonecutter  with  thumbs  for  fingers. 

(Gorman  leans  against  the  stone  and,  lighting  his  pipe,  indulges  in  un- 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  59 

couth  mimicry  punctuated  by  puffs  of  smoke.    His  audience  drop 
tools  and  relax  into  attitudes  of  enjoyment.) 

GORMAN 

Ah,  Signer  Jefferson,  how  the  American  stone  is  brittle.    It  crumbles 

like  cheese.    In  Italy,  signor 

{Such  acclaim  and  laughter  greet  the  intonation  of  this  evidently  fa- 
miliar phrase  that  Gorman's  voice  is  quite  drowned;  and  only  the  ex- 
aggerated shrug  of  his  great  shoulders  carries  on  the  imitation.  Raggi, 
a  stone-carver  of  Leghorn,  comes  lightly  up  the  steps  from  the  lawn, 
blithely  whistling  a  scrap  of  opera  melody.  He  is  a  nervous  person, 
whose  jaunty  breeches  and  scarlet  cap  atilt,  stamp  him  as  alien  as  his 
every  syllable,  liquid,  vivacious.) 

RAGGI 

Good-morning,  signori.  You  rest  ?  Signor  Gorman  entertains  you  with 
a  bit  of  pantomime.  Yes  ?  {He  does  not  seem  to  notice  that  his  airy  greeting 
meets  but  surly,  half -articulate  response.)  I  must  warn  you:  I  have  passed 
the  proctor. 

{He  smiles  at  the  general  scramble  to  resume  work.) 

GORMAN 

{Alone  scorning  to  stir.) 
Mr.  Brockenbrough  knows  we  are  not  loafers — Mr.  Jefferson,  too. 
{Raggi  resumes  his  whistling,  softly,  and  falls  to  chiselling  the  capital.) 

RAGGI 

Pardon.    Just  a  little  aside,  signor,  you  delay  my  chisel. 

GORMAN 

Delay?  Hm.  And  you  trying  stone  from  every  quarry  in  Virginia  for 
nearly  twelve  months — at  so  much  a  day. 

{Raggi's  chisel  slips.  A  sliver  of  stone  cracks  off  and  goes  rattling  to 
the  floor.  He  whirls  upon  Gorman,  mallet  uplifted,  face  dark  with 
anger.) 

RAGGI 

Me,  an  artist !    You  accuse ! 

{Brockenbrough  comes  up  from  the  lawn  and  steps  between  them.  He 
is  evidently  weighted  with  a  thousand  cares.) 

BROCKENBROUGH 

What  is  this? 

RAGGI 

An  infamy  on  my  art !    A  cruel  infamy ! 


6o  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

GORMAN 

Mister  Raggi  has  spoiled  another  capital. — But  he  is  used  to  that. 
Why  should  he  get  excited? 

{A  shadow  falls  upon  them,  the  natural,  morning  shadow  oj  Thomas 
Jefferson  who  has  come  silently  up  the  steps  at  the  end  of  the  terrace. 
Jefferson  is  a  tall,  old  man  in  an  old-fashioned,  snowy  stock,  and  suit 
of  homely  gray  broadcloth.  Before  his  steady  gaze  Gorman  drops 
his  eyes  swiftly  and  turns  away.  The  workmen  doff  caps  in  ready 
respect.) 


JEFFERSON 

Ah,  Gorman.     Good-morning,  Mr.  Brockenbrough.     More  trouble, 


signor 


RAGGI 

{The  angry  attitude  relaxing,  his  tone  dropping  to  a  plaint.) 
Madonna !   The  coarse  stone,  like  cheese.    I  but  tap  it  once,  so.    Crack ! 
The  work  of  weeks  gone. 

{Cornelia,  the  granddaughter  of  Jefferson,  following  him,  exclaims  with 
sympathy  at  Raggi' s  ill  luck.  She  is  a  wistful  young  person  with 
great  earnest  eyes  and  she  carries,  as  if  it  were  most  precious,  a  great 
portfolio  in  her  arms.  Going  to  the  rough-hewn  stone,  she  lays  the 
portfolio  down  and  touches  with  her  finger  tips  the  scar.) 

CORNELIA 

Is  it  quite  spoiled? 

BROCKENBROUGH 

Chop  off  the  curl  of  the  leaf,  Raggi.    It  will  never  be  noticed — thirty 
feet  aloft. 

RAGGI 

{Appealing  to  Jefferson  in  a  shocked  tone.) 
It  will  never  be  noticed.    Yes?    I  shall — chop  it? 

{Jefferson's  only  reply  is  a  slow,  sympathetic  smile  and  an  almost  im- 
perceptible shake  of  the  head.  He  turns  with  a  smile  to  the  men  at 
work  and  at  the  same  time  speaks  to  Brockenbrough.) 

JEFFERSON 

No  holiday,  Mr.  Brockenbrough,  even  to  welcome  Lafayette! 

BROCKENBROUGH 

Every  hour  counts  so — with  all  these  buildings  under  way. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  6i 

JEFFERSON 

But  it  is  here  our  neighbors  of  Charlottesville  are  coming  to  honor  La- 
fayette. 

(Brokenbrough  dismisses  the  men  with  a  gesture.    Pouring  down  on 
the  lawn  they  clap  each  other  on  the  hack  like  hulking  schoolboys 
turned  out  for  the  day.    Raggi  lingers  uncertainly.    Jefferson  ex- 
tends a  hand  to  Cornelia.) 
My  dear,  let  us  give  Mr.  Brockenbrough  the  specifications  and  drawings 
we  promised  him. 

CORNELIA 

{Opening  the  big  portfolio  with  immense  precision  and  giving  several 
drawings  to  Brockenbrough.) 
All  except  the  Temple  of  Fort  una  ViriHs.    That  I  have  to  shade. 

JEFFERSON 

{Smiling  indulgently.) 
We  are  as  jealous  of  presenting  our  conception  in  true  artistic  form  as  a 
Raphael,  Mr.  Brockenbrough. 

{Brockenbrough  smiles,  too,  and  bows  his  thanks  to  the  serious  young 
artist,  but  his  manner  is  quite  abstracted  from  the  pleasantries  of  the 
moment.) 

BROCKENBROUGH 

{Anxiously.) 
Doesn't  the  work  drag,  sir? 

JEFFERSON 

Why,  Mr.  Dinsmore  is  putting  up  the  modillions  in  his  pavilion. 

BROCKENBROUGH 

At  last.  But  Mr.  Perry  can't  go  on  with  the  foundations  of  his  until 
he  has  blasted  that  rock  out  of  the  way.  Mr.  Ware  has  not  begun  to  burn 
his  bricks.   And  now  this !    {He  touches  the  capital  with  the  sheaf  of  drawings.) 

JEFFERSON 

Remember,  Mr.  Brockenbrough,  we  are  building  not  what  shall  perish 
with  ourselves  but  what  shall  remain  to  be  respected  and  preserved  through 
other  ages.    If  we  do  not  finish  this  year  or  next  or  even  in  our  life 

BROCKENBROUGH 

But  the  months  pile  up  so  and  I  want  to  see  the  University  open. 


62  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

JEFFERSON 

And  I — if  I  might  live  to  see  it  on  its  legs,  {His  voice  trails  wistfully 
into  mild  humor,)  my  bantling  of  forty  years'  nursing  and  growth,  ah,  then, 
my  friend,  I  could  sing  with  serenity  my  "nunc  dimittis." 

(Brockenbrough  seems  much  moved.    He  clears  his  throat  twice  and  then 
abruptly  changes  the  subject.) 

BROCKENBROUGH 

Shall  I  have  Raggi  try  to  redeem  this 


JEFFERSON 

(Firmly.) 
No. 

BROCKENBROUGH 

— or  put  him  to  helping  Gorman  hack  out  those  door-sills? 

JEFFERSON 

{Smiling  at  Raggi' s  movement  oj  horror.) 
Not  on  Lafayette's  day.    Wait.    Some  of  the  Visitors  of  the  University 
will  be  here.    Let  us  have  their  advice. 

{Brockenbrough  goes  off.    Raggi  comes  forward  eagerly.) 

RAGGI 

In  Italy,  signor,  we  use  such  coarse  stone  only  for  paving  or  for — how 
do  you  say? — what  the  big  Gorman  hacks  out,  ah,  door-sills.  The  feet  do 
not  care.  But  the  eyes,  signor,  the  eyes  are  different.  They  look  up  to 
the  capital.    It  is  the  crown  of  the  house.    It  must  be  fair.     It  must  be 

delicate,  white 

{He  breaks  off  with  a  gesture  oj  despair  at  thejutility  oj  English  words.) 

CORNELIA 

Like  clouds. 

RAGGI 

{Gratejully.) 
She  understands.     The  capitals  for  your  beautiful  academy,  signor, 
should  be  of  marble. 

JEFFERSON 

Marble!  {He  begins  a  gesture  oj  negation,  but  the  suggestion  plainly 
jascinates  him.  Back  oj  them  dawns  an  other-worldly  light.  Jefferson  looks 
straight  ahead  oj  him,  but  his  eyes  are  illumined.  Cornelia's  gaze,  too,  seems 
to  change  and  soften.  Raggi,  alone  unconscious  oj  the  vision,  leans  absently 
against  the  rejected  stone.    Shadows  move  through  the  radiance  behind  them, 


The  Pageant:  Jefferson  and  his  Granddaughter 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  63 

shadows  of  such  figures  as  might  wreathe  a  Greek  vase.  There  is  the  sound  of 
foot-falls  as  light  as  falling  leaves,  a  strain  of  far-heard  pipes  and  timbrels. 
Then  the  shadows  vanish,  the  light  fades,  and  the  timbrels  are  still.)  No,  Signer 
Raggi,  no.    Go  before  you  tempt  me! 

{He  paces  away  along  the  terrace.    Raggi  goes  off,  but  Cornelia  follows 
Jefferson.) 

CORNELIA 

Marble  capitals  would  be  beautiful.  {Shadows  move  again,  and  then  the 
lovely  shapes  that  made  them,  dancers,  beautiful,  undulating.  When  they  are 
gone,  Cornelia  sighs  gently  and  insists,  half  in  statement,  half  in  puzzled  query, 
looking  up  into  Jefferson's  face.)  And  marble  would  be  best.  {Jefferson  only 
smiles  at  her  and  leads  her  back  toward  the  rejected  stone  where  he  seats  her  on 
the  little  campstool  which  up  to  now  has  masqueraded  in  whimsical  wizardry 
as  Jefferson's  cane.  She  as  by  habit  sits  down  to  begin  drawing.  Her  move- 
ments are  absent,  and  even  as  her  hands  busy  themselves  with  the  paper  her  eyes 
follow  Jefferson.  He  again  walks  away  along  the  terrace.  When  he  has  reached 
the  far  end,  she  repeats  her  puzzled  words.)     Marble  would  be  best. 

JEFFERSON 

{Halting  to  turn  and  look  back  at  her  as  she  sits,  eyes  grave,  pencil 
poised.) 
But,  my  dear,  how  the  very  word  would  reverberate  in  legislative  halls. 
Consider  Mr.  Cabell. 

CORNELIA 

Mr.  Cabell  would  not  mind.  Is  it  not  his  "holy  cause"?  And  Mr. 
Madison  and  President  Monroe  always 

JEFFERSON 

Humor  me.    But 

CORNELIA 

{Shutting  the  portfolio  and  going  to  him.) 
It  is  your  dream.    You  cannot  make  it  true  with  stone  too  coarse  to  be 
shaped.    Think  of  the  Pantheon.    When  it  rises  there  at  the  end  of  your 
lifting  line  of  colonnades,  must  it  wear  {Her  voice  breaks)  for  its  crown 
chipped  and  broken  stones? 

JEFFERSON 

Ah,  Cornelia,  I  am  not  Pericles  with  tribute  from  a  chain  of  subject 
states  to  buy  me  beauty. 


64  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

CORNELIA 

Just  the  capitals.  Everything  else  of  brick  and  wood  and  rough  stones. 
But  the  capitals  of  marble. 

{They  are  standing  at  the  farthest  point  of  the  terrace.  Jefferson  takes 
a  little  notebook  from  his  pocket  and  computes  rapidly,  speaking  the 
while  more  to  himself  than  to  her.) 

JEFFERSON 

Perhaps  thirty  all  told.  A  small  thing  to  a  great  state,  something  more 
than  a  score  of  marble  capitals.  But  it  would  mean — more  waiting.  I 
could  hardly  hope  to  live  to  see  it  finished,  our  Athenaeum — I  have  longed 
to  hear  it  hum  with  an  ordered  throng  of  youths  like  those  in  the  antique 
poet  who  sat  so  seemly  as  they  read  their  Homer  and  so  lightly  ran  their 
"laps  beneath  the  olive  trees." 

{Light,  far  footfalls,  pipes  and  timbrels,  moving  shadows,  and  a  row 
of  swaying  dancers,  hands  linked.  Two  youths  come  out  on  the  terrace. 
One,  the  younger,  runs  down  upon  the  grass  to  dance.  The  other 
drops  to  the  steps  where  he  half  reclines  as  he  looks  on.  Socrates,  a 
bearded  man  with  a  long  staff,  strolls  in  and  stands  meditatively  re- 
garding the  dance.  Both  youths  nod  to  him  affectionately;  and  the 
dancer  moves  in  ever-decreasing  arcs  nearer  and  nearer  to  him.) 

SOCRATES 

The  dance  of  Lysis  has  a  meaning,  I  suppose,  Phaedrus,  a  meaning  and 
a  name? 


The  Moth-dance. 
And  the  flame? 


PH^DRUS 


SOCRATES 


PILEDRUS 

You,  to  be  sure.    Are  you  not  a  purveyor  of  wisdom  ? 

SOCRATES 

{Sitting  down  and  bestowing  his  draperies  comfortably  as  for  a  long 
talk.) 
So  it  is  wisdom  the  Athenian  youth  crave. 

PH^DRUS 

Indeed.    And  their  fathers  for  them.    Men  spend  vast  sums  to  get  their 
sons  education. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  65 

SOCRATES 

What !  Exchange  solid  drachmas  for  such  a  vapor !  Dear,  dear.  And 
the  men  who  receive  all  this  money,  the  teachers — I  suppose  they  but  Sit 
and  hark  to  the  boys  con  their  Hesiod  and  Homer. 

(Lysis  laughs  aloud  as  he  drops  breathlessly  to  the  steps  at  Socrates' 
feet.) 

LYSIS 

Oh,  Socrates. 

PH^DRUS 

Hardly.  They  must  be  men  of  learning  and  high  purpose.  Otherwise 
the  youth  would  be  corrupted. 

SOCRATES 

True.  (He  tells  off  one  finger  of  his  uplifted  hand.)  Learning  and 
high  purpose  granted.  Then  the  father,  having  found  such  philosophers 
and  driven  his  bargain  may  go  his  way  in  peace.  Of  course  the  sages  will 
seek  out  the  young  son,  perhaps  in  the  market  place,  and  there,  vying 
with  cackling  fowls  and  hucksters  crying  their  fish  and  myrtles,  they  will 
press  at  the  youth's  elbow  and  pour  wisdom  in  his  ear.  — No?  Why  not? 
It  is  paid  for.    A  bargain  is  a  bargain. 

PH^DRUS 

(Moving  his  shoulders  fastidiously.) 
But  to  learn  in  the  noise  and  dust  of  the  market-place ! 

SOCRATES 

Then  where?  (Several  youths  come  up.  They  stand  listening  while 
their  attendant  crouches  apart,  as  by  custom.)  Phaedrus  here  is  about  to 
tell  us  where  it  is  meet  that  youth  shall  be  educated. 

PH^DRUS 

(In  some  embarrassment.) 

I  hardly  know.  But  the  place  must  be  beautiful,  an  academy  of  cool 
colonnades  and 

SOCRATES 

(Prompting.) 
Yes? 

PHiEDRUS 

And  a  lawn  where  (softly  quoting)  "the  plane-tree  whispers  to  the 
linden." 


66  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

SOCRATES 

(Telling  off  two  more  fingers.) 
A  fair  colonnade,  whispering  trees,  learned  teachers, — then  surely  the 
fathers  may  be  easy  now.    All  the  sons  will  be  wise. 

(The  youths  all  laugh,  and  others  press  nearer.  The  terrace  is  filling 
with  men  of  various  ages,  fiowingly  suggestive,  in  their  easy  grouping, 
of  Raphael's  School  of  Athens.  Phcedrus  springs  to  his  feet  in  his 
eagerness.) 

PH^DRUS 

But,  Socrates,  a  great  deal  depends  upon  the  sons  themselves. 

SOCRATES 

Why,  they  are  only  the  vessels  into  which  the  oil  is  to  be  poured. 
(Low  laughter  from  the  listeners.) 

PILEDRUS 

Even  so,  they  must  be  good  vessels,  not  leaky  or — hideous. 
(Murmurs  of  approbation.) 

SOCRATES 

Beautiful  vessels,  too!    O,  Phaedrus,  how  may  we  hope  to  make  the 
students  beautiful  ? 

PKLEDRUS 

By  trainers,  of  course,  by  the  wrestling-school,  by  racing,  by  jumping — 
(His  words  are  drowned  in  the  general  applause.  Socrates,  with  a 
good-natured  gesture,  admits  himself  worsted  and  turns  away  to- 
ward an  elderly  man,  who  promptly  rolls  up  the  papyrus  he  is  reading 
to  make  ready  for  delectable  talk.  The  boys  toss  off  their  mantles  and 
run  down  upon  the  lawn.  A  trainer  with  his  official  staff  and  wearing 
a  vivid  striped  mantle  selects  from  the  crowding  youths  a  half-dozen 
to  compete  in  a  race.  Slaves  with  oil-flasks  make  the  contestants 
ready.  They  withdraw  to  the  beginning  of  the  race-course.  There  is  a 
hum  of  eager  talk  and  speculation.  A  host  of  youths  pour  in  to  see  the 
sport.  They  crowd  the  lawn,  but  are  pressed  back  from  the  line  of  the 
race-course  by  trainers.  The  contestants  come  running  into  view. 
Lysis  is  winner,  and  is  at  once  caught  up  and  borne  back  with  bravos 
to  the  steps  of  the  terrace  to  be  crowned  with  laurel  by  a  red-robed  judge 
waiting  there.  The  enthusiastic  crowd  presses  in  upon  the  little  knot 
of  athletes  singing  jubilantly:) 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  67 

Hail,  heroes,  hail ! 
Weary,  dusty,  deaf  to  fame, 
Hear  our  pride  in  you  acclaim: 

Hail,  heroes,  hail! 

Shake,  stadium,  shake! 
Shake,  each  solid,  stony  seat. 
Shake  to  thud  of  champions'  feet. 

Shake,  stadium,  shake! 

Cheer,  comrades,  cheer! 
When  our  shout  the  stadium  fills, 
Make  its  echo  leap  the  hills. 

Cheer,  comrades,  cheer! 

(The  terrace  empties.  The  youths  still  singing  mount  to  the  slopes 
above  the  amphitheatre.  The  light  on  the  amphitheatre  grows  dim, 
but  the  rosy  glow  holds.) 

Interlude 

Music  in  which  blend  strains  familiar  to  University  victory  and  prowess 
in  athletics. 

{When  the  music  is  ending,  the  light  fades.  As  the  amphitheatre  bright- 
ens again,  Jefferson  and  Cornelia  are  seen  still  standing  half -hidden 
by  shrubbery.  A  man  who  is  presently  to  style  himself  a  plain  Amer- 
ican citizen,  a  voter,  speaks  officiously  at  Jefferson's  very  elbow.) 

VOTER 

Mr.  Jefferson. 

JEFFERSON 

{Startled,  recovers  himself  with  an  effort.) 
Sir,  have  I  had  the  honor ? 

VOTER 

You  do  not  know  me.    I  am  a  plain  American  citizen,  voted  for  you  for 
President.    I  want  a  word  with  you. 

{Jefferson  inclines  his  head  at  the  implied  obligation  and  gently  disen- 
gages Cornelia's  hand  lying  upon  his  arm.) 

JEFFERSON 

You  will  excuse  us,  my  dear? 

{Cornelia  drops  a  shy  curtsey  and  goes  toward  a  group  of  ladies  who 
have  come  up  from  the  lawn  accompanied  by  servants  with  baskets. 
One  of  them  greets  her.) 


68  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

WOMAN 

Cakes  for  the  banquet — and  we  have  yet  to  slice  them ! 

CORNELIA 

Let  me  help. 
{They  go  inside.) 

VOTER 

I  admire  your  political  principles,  Mr.  Jefferson.  I  respect  your  age,  but 
I  must  tell  you  that  people  are  very  dissatisfied  with  your  building  here — 
fancy  ornaments,  foreign  labor,  extravagance  of  all  kinds — we  want  more 

closets  and  fewer  columns 

{Jefferson  paces  away  from  him  a  few  steps  and  then  pauses,  his  eyes 
turned  toward  the  shadowy  confines  of  the  lawn.) 

JEFFERSON 

There  are  divers  minds,  sir,  and  divers  modes  of  thought.  That  we 
should  have  builded  to  meet  the  approbation  of  every  individual  was  in  it- 
self impossible.  We  had  no  supplementary  guide  but  our  own  judgment. 
{His  mild  voice  pauses.  Then  turning  suddenly  toward  the  voter,  he  puts  a  peri- 
od to  the  conversation.)  We  have  builded  by  our  taste,  sir,  and  by  otu: 
conscience. 

{He  hows  low  with  old-fashioned  courtesy  and  goes  within.  The  voter 
stands  a  moment  staring  after  him.  Cabell  comes  up  the  steps  and 
passes.  He  is  half  across  the  terrace  when  a  voice  halts  him.  Madison 
and  Monroe  cross  the  lawn  together.) 

MADISON 

Mr.  Cabell! 

{The  voter  recovers  himself  with  a  start  and  puts  out  his  hand  toward 
Cabell  as  Cabell  is  turning  back  to  the  steps.) 

VOTER 

You  do  not  know  me.  I  am  a  plain  American  citizen,  voted  for  you 
for  the  legislature 

CABELL 

{Bowing  rather  distantly  and  attempting  to  pass.) 
Accept  my  thanks,  sir. 

VOTER 

I  want  to  speak  to  you  about  Mr.  Jefferson's  wastefulness  in  the  build- 
ing going  on  here.    There  is  a  good  deal  of  gossip 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  69 

CABELL 

Gossip,  sir!  Mr.  Jefferson  is  as  indifferent  to  gossip  as  Monticello  to 
summer  mists.  {Chin  up,  he  passes  on  to  greet  Madison  and  Monroe.  They 
meet  beside  the  rejected  stone  and  the  little  camp-stool  forgotten  there.  CahelVs 
face  relaxes  at  sight  of  the  stool.  He  takes  it  up  and  folds  it  carefully. )  The  Old 
Sachem  is  here  ahead  of  us. 

{The  voter  goes  down  to  the  lawn  and  off.) 

MADISON 

Perhaps,  as  the  workmen  say,  he  watches  through  his  telescope  the 
driving  of  every  nail;  and  if  one  is  driven  falsely,  mounts  Old  Eagle  and 
comes  charging  down  to  right  it. 

MONROE 

Every  nail !  Ah,  sirs,  even  we,  the  Visitors,  scarcely  know  the  half  of 
Mr.  Jefferson's  dreams  for  the  University. 

CABELL 

Perhaps  we  should  grow  faint  if  we  often  looked  aloft  from  this  ma- 
terial base,  these  buildings  dearly  fought  for  and  not  yet  completely  won, — 
aloft  to  the  imagined  towers  of  science  he  bids  us  rear. 

MADISON 

{Musing.) 
We  talked  together,  he  and  I,  at  Monticello  last  night — the  punch-bowl 
half  buried  in  a  drift  of  pages,  the  gathered  dreams  of  half  a  century. 

CABELL 

{Interrupting  in  an  undertone.) 
And  such  ordered  dreams ! 

MADISON 

Exactly.  The  very  books  for  the  library  listed  as  minutely  as  those 
specifications  for  bricks  he  daily  sets  his  cramped  wrist  to  draw  up.  Even 
a  masterpiece  of  sound  defense  for  what  he  calls  "our  novelties,"  schools 
of  Anglo-Saxon,  agriculture,  government!  A  packet  of  letters  already 
written  to  precede  Mr.  Gilmer  to  Europe  on  his  quest  for  "characters  of 
the  first  order" 

MONROE 

We  have  progressed  since  the  day  when  Mr.  Jefferson  laid  out  the  first 
building  with  peg  and  rule  and  twine  here  in  Perry's  old  stubble  field. 


70  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

CABELL 

If  I  could  but  have  made  the  legislature  see  the  great  scale  of  his  vision ! 

MONROE 

You  have  accomplished  much.    You  will  do  more. 

CABELL 

(Sadly.) 
I  cannot  go  back  another  term.    My  health  is  quite  spent. 

MADISON 

Poor  Old  Sachem !    Does  he  know? 

CABELL 

No.    I  must  tell  him  to-day. 

(A  boy  dashes  across  the  lawn  shouting.) 

BOY 

He's  come !    Lafayette  has  come ! 

(The  sound  of  drums  and  processional  music.  Gaily  dressed  people 
gather  on  the  lawn.  From  the  building  come  Cornelia  and  the  ladies. 
They  curtsey  to  the  gentlemen  and  pass  down  to  the  lawn.  Down  the 
center  aisle  of  the  amphitheatre  and  through  the  lane  of  people,  who 
wave  handkerchiefs  and  cheer,  passes  the  procession:  the  chief  marshal 
and  his  aids;  the  president  of  the  day;  magistrates  and  other  local 
dignitaries;  Lafayette  and  his  staff.  A  fiagbearer  carries  the  flags 
of  America  and  France.  At  the  steps,  the  dignitaries  pause  and  di^ 
vide  to  let  Lafayette  pass  through.  Jefferson  meets  him  there.  They 
embrace,  and  the  cheering  mounts  to  a  frenzy.  ''Lafayette!  La- 
fayette!'') 

JEFFERSON 

God  bless  you,  General! 

LAFAYETTE 

Ah,  Jefferson!  (He  turns  toward  the  lawn  and  speaks  to  the  people.) 
Even  in  the  old  world,  I  think,  I  have  not  seen  a  work  that  so  clearly  speaks 
the  spirit  of  the  master  as  this,  your  Athenaeum,  speaks  of  him  who  has 
fathered  it.  Its  white  colonnades  are  yet  empty  of  young  life,  but  a  shadow 
falls  along  them  daily.  Athwart  the  centuries,  so  that  your  sons  and  their 
sons  in  turn  shall  walk  within  it,  still  will  stretch  the  shadow  of  the  friend 
of  freedom,  of  truth,  Thomas  Jefferson. 

(Cheers,  ''Jefferson!  Jefferson!''  One  voice  cries,  "The  Declaration!" 
Jefferson  bows  his  head.) 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  71 

JEFFERSON 

My  friends  and  neighbors,  I  am  old,  long  in  the  disuse  of  making  pub- 
lic speeches,  and  without  voice  to  utter  them — It  is  my  single  wish  to  hear 
you  acclaim  with  undivided  voice,  as  but  now  you  did  acclaim  our  great 
guest  and  me,  this,  our  University. 

(A  straggling  voice  calls,  "The  University  I"  but  the  crowd  stirs  with 
confusion.  The  bands  begin  to  play  again,  and  the  dignitaries  go  up 
the  steps  of  the  terrace.  There  they  form  a  lane  again,  and  the  chief 
marshal  by  gesture  invites  Lafayette  in  to  the  banquet.  Lafayette 
turns  to  Jefferson,  who  stands  looking  out  over  the  lawn,  and  offers 
him  his  arm.  Jefferson  squares  his  shoulders,  smiles  affectionately, 
and  lays  his  hand  within  the  elbow  of  the  old  marquis.  With  stately 
steps  they  walk  together  into  the  banquet  hall.  Again  the  crowd  cheers. 
When  the  banqueters  have  gone  the  throng  on  the  lawn  gradually  dis- 
perses, some  straying  in  groups  upon  the  terrace  to  look  curiously  about. 
A  woman  with  her  young  son  at  her  side  pauses  in  admiration  before 
the  unfinished  capital.  The  voter  approaches  them.  Cornelia,  half- 
hiddenfrom  them  by  a  clump  of  shrubs  on  the  lawn,  stands  listening.) 

VOTER 

I  suppose  you'd  call  that  beautiful. 

WOMAN 

Why,  no — it  is  still  so  rough — but  it  suggests  beauty. 

VOTER 

H'm.    More  useless  finery,  fancy  folderols,  expensive  toys  for  a  man  in 
his  dotage. 

A  MAN 

(Coming  up  to  them.) 
Is  it  true  that  Mr.  Jefferson  will  have  no  professors  here  but  foreigners 
— and  Unitarians? 

(The  hum  of  voices  swells  and  the  stragglers  foregather.) 

VOTER 

I  don't  doubt  it.    No  one  really  knows  what  religion  he  believes  in  him- 
self. 

MAN 

And  he  did  get  a  lot  of  foreign  notions  when  he  lived  abroad. 

WOMAN 

Ah,  you  are  all  swift  to  detract. 


72  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

HER   SON 

(Tensely.) 
But  I  heard  you  cheering,  "Jefferson!    Jefferson!" 

WOMAN 

Hush,  my  son. 

(From  the  banquet  hall  comes  an  orator's  voice  rounding  a  period: 
" — the  friend  of  freedom,"  and  then  the  sound  of  applause.) 

VOTER 

But,  my  boy,  that  is  the  thing  to  do,  to  cheer  when  public  men  stand 
before  us.  I  voted  for  Thomas  Jefferson  for  President,  but  when  it  comes  to 
emptying  out  my  pockets,  why,  that  is  different. 

BYSTANDERS 

Very  different — .  Indeed — .  — especially  for  pagan  professors  and 
un-American  buildings. 

VOTER 

Of  course  it  was  not  our  business  if  he  chose  to  throw  away  a  lifetime 

and  a  fortune  on  building  his  own  house.    Monticello 

(Raggi  pushes  through  the  ring  of  listeners  and  interrupts.) 

RAGGI 

Monticello?  Ah,  the  fair,  the  serene  house.  Long  after  the  flimsy  shel- 
ters in  your  valley  lie  rotted  it  will  stand  in  beauty — so  art  endures,  sign- 
ori  and  signore — on  the  breast  of  its  little  mountain. 

(A  breath  of  silence,  during  which  Raggi  picks  up  his  chisel,  left  for- 
gotten on  the  stone.) 

MAN 

And  who  is  he? 

VOTER 

(Shrugging  his  shoulders  and  turning  to  go  down  the  steps.) 
An  importation  of  Mr.  Jefferson's — from  Italy. 

(The  circle  breaks  up  and  the  people  drift  away.    Raggi,  leaving,  is 
stopped  by  Cornelia  coming  up  from  the  lawn,  portfolio  in  her  arms.) 

CORNELIA 

If  you  please.  I  want  to  show  you  the  drawing  of  the  library,  the  great 
building  to  stand  at  the  head  of  the  lawn.  (She  opens  the  portfolio  on  the 
capital,  and  Raggi  gives  a  low  exclamation  of  pure  delight.)  Do  you  recognize 
it? 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  73 

RAGGI 

Recognize  it  ?    Ah ! 

CORNELIA 

It  will  be  smaller 


RAGGI 

Of  a  certainty.  But  the  proportions!  The  perfect  round.  Have  you 
seen  it,  the  temple  of  all  the  gods?  You  have  been  to  Italy,  to  Rome  it- 
self ?    You  know  the  Pantheon  ? 

CORNELIA 

(Wistfully,  shaking  her  head.) 
Only  pictures.     (She  watches  him  study  the  drawing.)    Would  rough 
capitals  spoil  it  ? 

RAGGI 

Rough  capitals  ?    A  thing  impossible.    They  must  be  of  marble. 
(With  a  gesture  of  finality  he  turns  abruptly  away.    She  follows.) 

CORNELIA 

But  of  course  there  are  different  sorts  of  marble,  some  smoother  than 
others,  whiter,  some 

RAGGI 

Ah,  if  we  were  but  in  Italy!  There  is  the  perfect  marble,  flawless  like 
untracked  snow. 

CORNELIA 

It  is ? 

RAGGI 

Carrara. 

CORNELIA 

Oh.      Carrara. 

{Satisfied,  she  turns  to  tie  the  portfolio  again,  and,  when  Raggi  has  gone, 
sits  down  on  the  steps,  her  chin  on  her  palms.  Jefferson  comes  from 
the  banquet  hall.) 

JEFFERSON 

Cornelia,  you  are  waiting  for  me  ?  But  you  will  grow  tired.  Men  love 
talk  like  old  wine. 

CORNELIA 

Shall  you  have  a  chance  to  speak  to  the  Visitors  of  the  University? 


74  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

JEFFERSON 

When  the  meat  is  served.  We  are  to  come  here.  But  you  must  not 
wait,  my  child.  Are  you  delaying  your  carriage  until  the  file  winds  up  to 
Monticello  so  that  I  may  be  your  cavalier  ?  I  am  but  a  grizzled  outrider,  and 
Eagle  an  ancient  mount 

CORNELIA 

Listen.  I  have  found  what  kind  of  marble  we  want  for  the  capitals,  the 
smoothest,  the  whitest,  the  best — Carrara. 

JEFFERSON 

{Suddenly  serious,  taking  her  chin  in  his  hand  to  study  her  eyes.) 
My  dear,  we  can  but  try.    I  will  ask  our  Visitors. 

{Jefferson  and  Cornelia  separate,  he  going  with  bowed  head  back  to 
the  banquet  hall  and  she  stealing  softly  down  to  the  lawn.) 

{Light  dawns  upon  the  terrace.  Phcedrus,  in  short,  dun-colored  cape 
and  little  hard,  round  hat  slung  about  his  neck,  comes  out  between 
Socrates  and  Lysis.  He  wears  a  new  and  strange  appearance  which 
cannot  be  entirely  attributable  to  his  clothes,  although  they  are  of 
course  both  new  and  strange.  It  is  rather  a  matter  of  lifted  chin  and  a 
far-off  gaze.  Lysis  presses  very  close  to  him,  looking  up  into  his  face 
and  now  and  then  feeling  the  stuff  of  his  cape.  Socrates  smiles  whim- 
sically at  the  two  oj  them.) 

SOCRATES 

Lysis,  I  think  you  are  envying  Phaedrus.  But  the  life  of  training  he  has 
begun  is  rigorous.  Surely  you  do  not  crave  that  ugly  uniform.  {Lysis 
laughs  and  shakes  his  head.)  Or  the  close-cropped  head?  No?  Perhaps 
it  is  the  mad  revels  of  the  young  men,  their  societies  of  mystic  names? 
Nor  these?  Then  perhaps  the  shield  and  spear  Phaedrus  will  have  from  the 
state — and  the  dangers  he  will  soon  go  out  to  encounter  on  the  frontier? 

LYSIS 

Oh,  no,  Socrates. 

SOCRATES 

Then  it  is  the  sacred  oath  he  swore  just  now  in  the  sanctuary.  {Lysis 
not  denying  this,  but  instead  looking  eagerly  toward  him,  Socrates  drops  his 
humorous  tone  and  speaks  very  gently.)  Ah,  Lysis,  do  you  suppose  that  you 
must  wait  for  a  day  and  year  to  take  an  oath  as  sacred?  Or  that  temples 
alone  can  consecrate  high  purpose?  This  rough  stone  be  your  altar.  Phae- 
drus, here,  and  I,  your  friends,  will  speak  a  prayer  with  you,  and  like  good 
comrades  claim  a  share  in  the  blessings  it  brings. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  75 

PHiEDRUS 

But,  Socrates,  men  say  you  do  not  believe  in  the  gods. 

SOCRATES 

And  you,  who  are  my  friend,  who  talk  with  me  daily,  how  do  you  an- 
swer them  in  your  heart  ?  Do  you  say,  Socrates  believes  the  sun  a  stone,  he 
has  no  faith  in  what  is  divine  ? 

PHiEDRUS 

No.  But  the  men  who  are  so  clamorous  to  pass  the  sentence  of  death 
upon  you  are  not  your  friends.  They  declare  you  never  sacrifice  to  the  gods 
of  the  state 

SOCRATES 

Hush.  It  is  sacrilege  to  give  God  to  our  little  Attic  state.  Pray  with 
Lysis.    Ask  with  him  the  dearest  wish  of  his  heart.    • 

PILEDRUS 

Ah,  I  know  what  that  will  be — honor. 

SOCRATES 

Is  that  so,  Lysis?  Do  you  yearn  above  all  things  for  truth?  (Lysis 
nods.  The  two  youths  stand  by  the  rough  stone  and  pray  after  Socrates.)  O, 
Pallas,  glorious  goddess,  keeper  of  wisdom, 

PH^DRUS   AND   LYSIS 

0,  Pallas,  glorious  goddess,  keeper  of  wisdom, 


SOCRATES 

— ^give  me  beauty  in  my  inward  soul.    May  I  be  brave. 

PHvEDRUS  AND  LYSIS 

— give  me  beauty  in  my  inward  soul.     May  I  be  brave. 

SOCRATES 

And  then,  Athena,  send  me  truth. 

PH^DRUS   AND  LYSIS 

And  then,  Athena,  send  me  truth. 

{Socrates  moves  away,  leaving  Phcedrus  and  Lysis.  Phcedrus,  taking  a 
scroll  from  his  tunic,  sits  down  to  read  in  it.  After  a  moment  Lysis 
slips  to  a  lower  step  and  drops  down  quietly.  He  hugs  his  knees  boy- 
fashion  and  bends  over  to  sniff  delicately  at  the  beautiful  papyrus.) 


76  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

LYSIS 

Oil  of  sandalwood.     Mmmm. 

PHiEDRUS 

(Thinking  aloud.) 
It  would  be  splendid  to  be  a  poet,  to  speak  truth,  but  half -knowing 
how — ^yet  easily,  as  the  smilax  climbs. 

LYSIS 

I  have  thought  of  that. 

PHJEDRUS 

After  this  (touching  his  uniform),  I  may  try  it, — try  putting  into  starry 
words  the  beauty  that  lumps  in  my  throat. 

LYSIS 

(Reproachfully.) 
But  you  were  going  to  be  a  master  artisan  and  fashion  wings  for  us. 
You  said  it  would  be  simple  to  fly. 

PILEDRUS 

Simple?  Even  the  seagulls  know  as  much,  poising  surely  between  blue 
and  blue  in  the  wake  of  tall  triremes. 

LYSIS 

(Still  reproachfully.) 
And  only  this  morning  you  talked  of  founding  a  great  world  state  so 
that  there  might  be  an  end  of  wars  and  all  the  oppressed  should  be  free. 

PHiEDRUS 

Who  can  tell?  (Moonlight  silvers  the  fagade  beyond  the  terrace  and 
streaks  the  floor  with  light  and  shadow.  A  fair  Athenian  girl  in  shimmering 
fabrics  with  garlands  of  unreal  silver  flowers  stands  a  moment  in  a  path  of  light. 
Phcedrus,  spying  her,  springs  to  his  feet,  hand  outstretched.  Startled,  she 
vanishes  before  Lysis,  leaping  up  and  looking  back,  has  seen  her.)  It  was 
Helen! 

LYSIS 

How  could  you  know  ? 

PH^DRUS 

By  her  beauty.  Was  it  not  the  glory  of  Greece  ?  I  have  seen  her  in  a 
thousand  dreams  flash  white-armed  along  these  moon-barred  colonnades. 

(Again  the  girl  appears.  This  time  it  is  Lysis  who  sees  her.  He  cries 
aloud  and  runs  toward  her.  She  eludes  him.  He  pursues  and  over- 
takes her.    But  she  breaks  away  and  leaves  him  with  empty  arms 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  n 

staring  at  the  moon-lines  on  the  floor.     Soft  music,  and  then  the  voice 
of  song:) 

The  moon's  a  drink 
In  a  silver  flask. 
Drain  it  and  dream 
Whatever  you  ask: 
Shadow  and  shine, 
And  the  stir  of  leaves, 
Trim  hands,  slim  hands, 
In  fluttering  sleeves. 

Dream  porticoes 
On  the  silvered  ground. 
Dream  of  a  lute 
And  dance  to  the  sound. 
Breath  of  the  dew. 
And  a  forehead  fair, 
White  feet,  light  feet. 
And  cool-wreathed  hair. 

{The  girl  comes  slowly  out  into  the  light  again.  Lysis  meets  her  and 
they  dance  of  the  love  that  comes  to  youth  in  dreams,  mystic,  evanescent. 
At  last  she  slips  away.  He  follows.  Other  maidens  come  and  dance 
on  the  lawn;  and  the  dance  drifts  into  joyous  revelry.  They  go  off 
laughing,  Phcedrus  in  their  midst.     The  moonlight  endures.) 


INTERLUDE 

Music,  in  which  blend  strains  associated  with  University  revels  and 
dancing. 

{The  amphitheatre  grows  bright  again.  The  door  of  the  banquet  hall 
opens,  loosing  a  hum  of  general  talk  and  laughter  and  the  clink  of 
silver  upon  china.  Jefferson  comes  out  resting  his  hand  affectionately 
upon  Cabell's  shoulder.) 

JEFFERSON 

Whether  to  ask  remission  of  our  debt  or  funds  for  the  library?  The 
latter,  oh,  surely,  my  friend,  the  latter.  Were  we  to  stop  building  now  and 
open  our  doors,  we  should  fully  satisfy  the  common  sort  of  mind.  And  so 
we  should  then  be  forced  to  proceed  forever  upon  that  low  level. 

CABELL 

I  have  said  we  must  never  again  ask  money  for  building — but  it  is  my 
chief  happiness  to  please  you,  in  the  little  time  I  have  left. 


78  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

JEFFERSON 

{Starting  away  from  him.) 
The  little  time? 

CABELL 

I  am  quite  unable  to  stand  for  reelection. 

JEFFERSON 

Desert  now  your  holy  labors!  Think — one  life  you  have.  Can  you 
spend  it  better  ?  The  host  of  young  in  the  years  ahead  depend  for  the  free- 
dom of  their  souls  upon  our  sacrifice  of  time,  health,  even  life — {His  voice 
breaks,  but  he  tries  to  go  on.)  If  you  continue  not  firm-breasted,  how  shall 
I  without  vigor  of  body  or  mind 

CABELL 

{Stopping  him.) 
It  is  not  in  my  nature  to  resist  such  an  appeal. 

JEFFERSON 

{Again  dropping  his  hand  on  CabelVs  shoulder.) 
My  friend,  my  friend!    — You  will  announce  your  candidacy? 

CABELL 

In  the  next  issue  of  the  Enquirer. 

VOTER 

{Coming  up  to  them  from  the  lawn.) 
The  talk  I  mentioned  to  you,  Mr.  Jefferson,  has  reached  a  head  to-day. 
The  people  gathered  here  are  very  dissatisfied.    When  they  come  together 
again  to  see  Lafayette  come  out,  you  should  speak  to  them,  explain  this 
rumor 

CABELL 

{Frigidly.) 
A  rumor,  sir? 

VOTER 

That  these  fancy  capitals  are  an  utter  failure. 

CABELL 

More  gossip,  sir. 

JEFFERSON 

Gently,  my  friend.  We  are  physicians  unenviably  prescribing  a 
draught  nauseous  to  the  public.  {Turning  to  the  voter.)  You  are  correct  in 
supposing  us  to  have  made  mistakes,  but  we  prefer  to  make  no  speeches.    I 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  79 

have  found  in  a  long  life  that  the  approbation  of  the  public  denied  in  the 
beginning  will  surely  follow  right  action  in  the  end.  Time  dissipates  these 
mists  of  prejudice.  We  are  building  for  those  who  are  to  come  after  us. 
They  will  know  whether  we  have  builded  well  or  ill.  It  is  from  posterity 
that  we  expect  remuneration  {extending  his  hand  toward  the  far  boundaries  of 
the  lawn),  and  I  fear  not  the  appeal.  (The  voter  goes  off  as  he  came.)  It  is 
true,  Mr.  Cabell.  Our  Italian  artist  to-day  spoiled  this  stone.  {He  turns 
in  greeting  to  Madison  and  Monroe  as  they  come  out  oj  the  banquet  hall.)  Your 
feasting  with  Lafayette  has  been  interrupted,  sirs,  by  the  claims  of  your 
office  as  Visitors  of  the  University.  Your  rector  needs  advice.  Signor  Raggi 
has  decided,  after  all,  that  Corinthian  capitals  can  never  be  faithfully  carved 
from  such  coarse  stone.  Shall  we  in  the  absence  of  our  colleagues,  the  other 
Visitors,  arrest  his  work? 

MONROE 

By  all  means. 

MADISON 

Pay  his  passage  back  to  Leghorn  if  need  be.  He  is  hardly  more  popular 
than  useful. 

JEFFERSON 

And  the  capitals?  {The  other  men  are  silent,  waiting  for  him  to  go  on.) 
We  shall  still  have  to  get  capitals.  {He  takes  the  notebook  from  his  pocket  and, 
consulting  it,  speaks  in  deliberate,  matter-of-fact  tones.)  I  have  made  compu- 
tations. Capitals  are  relatively  cheap  in  Italy.  They  understand  there 
doing  these  things  more  expeditiously  than  we.  We  can  have  at  a  reason- 
able figure — less  than  we  have  already  spent  in  experiment — capitals  of 
flawless  marble. 

MADISON 

Marble ! 

CABELL 

And  imported !     Consider  the  legislature,  Mr.  Jefferson. 

MONROE 

Think  how  delays  goad  the  public  impatience. 

JEFFERSON 

{As  if  he  has  not  heard.) 
These  colonnades  will  shelter  the  visions  of  unnumbered  hosts,  young 
Lockes,  Newtons,  even  Lafayettes  brave  for  right.    Here  the  fledgling  poet 
shall  sense  the  law  of  austere  beauty  which  Homer  knew,  and  boy  Ciceros 

learn  to  strip  their  raw  fancies  from  the  chaste,  compelling  truth 

{He  breaks  off.     There  is  a  little  silence,  and  then  Madison  taking  a 
step  forward  speaks  to  Cabell  and  Monroe.) 


8o  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

MADISON 

Thomas  Jefferson  is  the  father  of  the  University  of  Virginia.  It  is  the 
very  shadow  of  his  great  self.  He  alone  can  know  how  its  spirit  must  be 
bodied  forth.    Let  us  not  deny  him  one  stone. 

MONROE 

Jefferson,  you  must  decide. 

{He  seizes  Jefferson's  hand  and  wrings  it  warmly.     The  others  follow 
his  example  and  go  at  once  back  toward  the  banquet  hall.) 

JEFFERSON 

But  your  advice — I  need  your  advice — your  help 


CABELL 

You  are  an  infinitely  better  judge  than  we. 

{They  go  in.  Jefferson  stands  alone  staring  down  at  the  rejected  stone, 
his  notebook  still  in  his  hand.  Brockenbrough  comes  up  from  the 
lawn.) 


You  saw  the  Visitors? 
Yes. 

About  Raggi,  I  mean. 
About  Raggi?    Yes. 


BROCKENBROUGH 

JEFFERSON 
BROCKENBROUGH 

JEFFERSON 


BROCKENBROUGH 

What  did  they  decide,  sir?    Is  he  to  go  on  spoihng  good  material? 

JEFFERSON 

No.  Oh,  no.  We  must  have  no  more  good  material  spoiled,  Mr. 
Brockenbrough.  {His  abstraction  is  so  deep  that  he  seems  not  to  notice  Brocken- 
brough's  restless  shifting  of  position.)  We  must  stop  Raggi  from  spoiling 
good  material.     They  were  clear  about  that. 

BROCKENBROUGH 

And  the  capitals?    How  shall  we  finish  the  columns? 

JEFFERSON 

They  told  me  to  decide — but  I  am  very  tired — It  would  take  a  long 
time  to  bring  capitals  from  Italy,  Mr.  Brockenbrough. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  8i 

BROCKENBROUGH 

A  good  many  months,  I  should  suppose,  and  a  clumsy  job  at  best. 
Even  after  they  are  dumped  off  at  New  York,  they  would  have  to  be  got  to 
Richmond,  and,  after  that,  long,  tedious  hauls  by  batteaux  and  wagons. 
It  would  delay  us  indefinitely. 

JEFFERSON 

Months  and  months, 

BROCKENBROUGH 

{With  sudden  sympathy.) 
Why  worry  now,  sir?    You've  had  a  long  day.     You  can  discharge 
Raggi  to-morrow — and  then  think  about  the  capitals. 

JEFFERSON 

To-morrow.     I  will  decide  to-morrow. 

{Brockenbrough  goes  off  hat  in  hand.     From  the  banquet  hall  comes 
Lafayette.) 

LAFAYETTE 

Jefferson.     My  friend. 

JEFFERSON 

Lafayette,  Lafayette,  the  years  press  sensibly  on  our  shoulders.  How 
long  since  your  shield  covered  this  neighborhood  from  the  ravages  of  Corn- 
wallis !  How  long  since  you  brought  your  band  of  patriots  to  my  house  in 
Paris  to  wish  a  constitution !  History  has  turned  many  chapters  since  then, 
of  Robespierre,  Barras,  Bonaparte  and  the  Bourbons. 

LAFAYETTE 

Many  chapters  indeed,  Jefferson. 

JEFFERSON 

{Walking  away,  head  bowed.) 
Replete  with  intrigue,  dark  with  death. 

LAFAYETTE 

{Following.) 
But  on  every  page  the  bright  recurrent  phrase. 

JEFFERSON 

The  bright  phrase  ? 

LAFAYETTE 

You  ask !  You  who  in  young  manhood  wrote,  all  men  are  free ;  and  now 
in  the  ripeness  of  age  make  them  this  material  pledge.  {His  gesture  includes 
the  buildings  and  lawn.) 

6 


82  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

JEFFERSON 

Freedom. 

LAFAYETTE 

A  fair  flag  for  the  young  crusaders  to  be  nurtured  here. 

{The  chief  marshal  comes  out  of  the  banquet  hall  and  looks  about  him. 
Lafayette,  at  the  far  end  of  the  terrace,  presses  Jefferson's  two  hands 
in  silence  and  joins  the  marshal.     They  go  back  into  the  banquet  hall.) 

JEFFERSON 

Young  Lafayettes  brave  for  truth. 

(A  shadowy  figure  slips  in  and  kneels  beside  the  rejected  stone.  Then 
comes  Socrates,  hands  behind  him,  face  lifted,  intent  upon  absorbing 
reverie.  Back  of  him  is  Phcedrus  with  shield  and  spear.  They  are 
almost  upon  the  kneeling  youth  when  Phcedrus,  seeing  him,  lays  his 
hand  upon  Socrates'  arm.) 

SOCRATES 

What,  Lysis!  Still  at  the  altar  of  truth  ?  (As  Lysis  lifts  grief -stricken 
eyes,  his  tone  of  raillery  softens  into  tender  reproach.)     Ah,  my  son,  you  grieve. 

PH^DRUS 

{In  a  low  tone.) 
Because  I  am  ordered  to  the  frontier  and  you  are  to  be  tried,  Lysis  is 
sure  I  shall  be  killed  and  you  condemned. 

SOCRATES 

Lysis,  I  was  condemned  to  die  from  the  hour  of  my  birth.  My  judges 
can  but  fix  the  time  of  my  setting  forth.  Look,  is  tranquil  sleep  a  boon  or  a 
curse  ? 

LYSIS 

{Rising  and  never  taking  his  eyes  from  Socrates'  face.) 
A  boon,  of  course. 

SOCRATES 

Or  if,  as  some  say,  we  live  on  after  death,  would  not  Phaedrus  joyfully 
go  to  meet  the  heroes  of  old — Palamedes  and  Ajax,  the  son  of  Telamon? 
Think,  Lysis,  what  could  he  not  learn  of  Orpheus  or  of  Homer. 

LYSIS 

{Lifting  his  arms,  as  though  they  were  winged  and  he  would  take  flight.) 
Truth  itself. 

PH^DRUS 

And  how  they  would  tell  it ! 


ELnruin 


ij,(,i,i,i,i,i , 


Greek  Dancing  at  the  Pageant 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  83 

SOCRATES 

You  see.  The  hour  is  neither  here  nor  there.  Would  not  you  yourself, 
Lysis,  who  are  yet  young,  this  moment  gladly  die,  if  you  so  might  lighten, 
a  little,  men's  load  of  tyranny  and  error? 

LYSIS 

Gladly— Oh! 

{Far  off  a  trumpet  sounds  and  then  the  tread  of  marching  feet.  A 
company  of  youths  with  shields  and  spears  passes  along  and  Phcedrus 
silently  joins  them.  Lysis,  lifting  his  arms  high  above  his  head,  leaps 
down  the  steps  to  dance  upon  the  grass.  He  dances,  not  the  freedom  of 
nature  hut  the  blood-bought  liberty  of  peoples,  to  music  which  is  martial 
and  splendid.  Socrates  watches  him  and  then  goes  away,  stopping 
once  or  twice  to  look  back  at  him.  Dancers  in  deep  blue  come  in.  The 
recurrent  poses  of  their  dance  suggest  a  frieze  or  the  pediment  of  some 
Greek  temple.  When  their  dance  is  ended  Lysis  rushes  up  the  steps 
and  pauses  there,  arms  uplifted  as  though  he  would  actually  take  flight. 
Again  there  are  trumpets.  He  drops  his  arms  and  marches  away  at 
the  head  of  the  martial  company.) 

{The  doors  of  the  banquet  hall  are  thrown  open,  and  there  floats  forth  a 
confusion  of  talk  and  the  scraping  of  chairs.  The  flag-bearer  comes 
out,  but,  finding  himself  a  little  premature,  halts  suddenly  and  stands 
looking  back  almost  hidden  by  the  mingled  folds  of  the  two  flags.  The 
nearly  level  light  throws  a  long  diagonal  shadow  across  the  terrace, 
enveloping  Jefferson.  Lafayette  comes  out.  He  pauses  once  at  the 
very  spot  where  Lysis  stood  a  moment  earlier,  and  the  sunlight  falls 
startlingly  upon  him  and  the  mingled  flags  behind  him.  The  ban- 
queters coming  out  in  confusion  fill  the  terrace,  and  crowds  on  the 
lawn  press  near  the  steps.  A  fragment  of  cheering  struggles  up,  but 
clamor  drowns  it.  Lafayette  goes  down  the  steps  with  his  staff,  fol- 
owed  by  the  local  dignitaries;  and  the  people  push  in  behind  them. 
Jefferson  is  left  alone.  From  the  shadow  on  the  lawn  pass  workmen 
homeward  bound  singing  softly:) 

Blow  upon  blow,  blow  upon  blow, 
Build  toward  bending  skies. 

{Jefferson  hurries  after  them  along  the  terrace,  calling.) 

JEFFERSON 

Gorman,  oh,  Gorman! 

GORMAN 

Yes,  Mr.  Jefferson  ? 


84  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

JEFFERSON 

Has  Signer  Raggi  gone  ? 

GORMAN 

No,  Mr.  Jefferson. 

{Jefferson  has  stopped  in  the  light;  and  its  glow  falls  full  upon  his  face 
turned  toward  Gorman  down  on  the  lawn.) 


JEFFERSON 

Then  send  him  to  me. 

{Gorman  goes  hack.  There  is  a  light,  deepening  to  brilliance,  and  the 
sound  of  flutes  in  processional  drawing  nearer  and  nearer.  A  girl 
comes  out  and  dances,  and  after  her  Athenian  maidens  bearing  green 
palm  fronds.  They  dance  on  the  grass  and  then  sweep  the  rejected 
stone  and  the  steps  with  their  branches.  The  flutes  are  at  hand,  and 
the  players  appear.  After  them  come  other  groups  in  sacred  proces- 
sional: high-born  maidens  carrying  aloft  painted  jars  of  oil  and  golden 
vases  of  wine;  old  men  with  olive-boughs;  athletes  wearing  coronals 
of  victory;  and  attendants  of  the  temple,  some  with  long  garlands  of 
flowers  for  the  altar  and  some  with  trays  and  baskets  of  sacrificial 
loaves  and  fruit.  From  the  slopes  above  the  amphitheatre  come  the 
host  of  Athenian  youths  in  ordered  march  filling  the  lawn  in  great 
semicircles.  They  carry  unlighted  torches.  At  last  the  priestess  of 
Athena  walks  slowly  forth  to  stand  beside  the  stone.  An  attendant 
brings  her  the  lustral  bowl.  She  bathes  her  hands.  Attendants  offer 
fagots.    She  kindles  afire  and  prays.) 


PRIESTESS 

Cleanse  us  of  error,  great  daughter  of  Jove. 

{As  the  fire  leaps  into  flame,  Lysis  draws  near  in  the  last  measures  of 
the  Moth-dance.  The  priestess  gives  a  torch  into  his  hand.  He  runs 
down  and  kindles  the  torch  in  the  hands  of  a  youth  near  the  steps. 
The  light  travels  from  hand  to  hand  until  the  whole  lawn  is  ablaze  with 
torches.    The  youths  sing:) 

High  in  the  vaulted  council  halls 
The  old  men  thoughtful  sit. 
They  vote" for  peace  or  vote  for  war 
As  seems  to  them  most  fit. 
(Lads  the  while  go  whistling  by) 
But  when  bugles  blare, 
It's  the  young  who  dare, 
And  the  young  go  out  to  die. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  85 

Build  here  a  temple :  young  men  dream 

Of  altars'  leaping  fire. 

They  yearn  to  feel,  they  yearn  to  know 

With  ardent  young  desire. 

(Lips  the  while  may  whistling  be) 

But  the  heart  of  youth 

Craves  the  flame  of  truth — 

And  it's  youth  must  set  men  free. 

{Still  singing,  carrying  torches  aloft,  led  by  Lysis,  they  march  up  the 
steps  and  through  the  central  doorway  of  the  building.  Group  by 
group,  the  worshipers  follow.  The  priestess,  when  they  have  all  gone, 
pours  a  perfumed  libation  on  the  fire,  quenching  the  flame,  and  her- 
self follows.     The  last  sound  of  the  recessional  is  the  echo  of  flutes.) 

{A  group  of  workmen  passes.  Jefferson  hurries  toward  them  into  the 
light,  but  then  he  pauses,  waiting.  Another  group  passes.  Then 
come  Gorman  and  Raggi.) 


RAGGI 

(Cap  in  hand,  below  the  steps.) 
You  wanted  me,  signor? 
(Gorman  goes  on  by.) 

JEFFERSON 

Yes,  Raggi.    I  have  decided. 

CORNELIA 

(Coming  out  of  the  shrubs  at  the  other  side  of  the  steps.) 
Are  you  never  coming  ? 

JEFFERSON 

Ah,  my  child,  is  Wild  Air  impatient  ? 

CORNELIA 

Wild  Air!  Why,  dear.  Wild  Air  belonged  to  White  House  days.  I  can 
hardly  remember  him.    Don't  you  know — you  ride  Eagle  now. . 

JEFFERSON 

Yes,  yes.  Eagle,  Old  Eagle.  (He  straightens  himself.  The  sunset  light 
deepens  in  color  upon  his  face.)  Raggi,  I  have  decided.  You  shall  be  our 
agent  to  buy  capitals  in  Italy. 


86  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

RAGGI 

In  Italy.    Of  marble,  signer?    It  is  so  firm  to  the  chisel. 


CORNELIA 

(Softly,  hands  to  her  breast.) 
Marble  of  Carrara  ? 

JEFFERSON 

White  marble  from  the  quarries  of  Carrara. 

(Raggi  goes  off,  and  Cornelia  turns  away.  Jefferson  comes  down  the 
steps  to  the  lawn,  his  shadow  yet  a  moment  lying  in  the  last  path  of 
light.) 


THE  THIRD  DAY 

The  proceedings  of  the  third  day  of  the  Centennial  consisted  of 
a  pubHc  assembly  in  the  Amphitheatre,  with  addresses  by  the  British 
Ambassador  and  the  Professor  of  International  Law  and  Diplomacy 
at  Columbia  University;  a  pilgrimage  to  Monticello  and  a  reception 
there,  with  addresses  on  the  life  and  teachings  of  Thomas  Jefferson; 
and  a  formal  dinner  in  the  Rotunda  to  delegates  and  invited  guests. 
It  was  a  day  of  tributes  to  the  University  and  its  Founder  by  distin- 
guished spokesmen. 

The  ceremonies  of  the  day  began  with  the  reading  of  a  letter  of 
greeting  from  ex-President  Woodrow  Wilson.  The  President  of  the 
University  said: 

As  a  prologue  to  these  exercises,  I  take  leave  to  read  a  brief  letter  from  a 
son  of  this  University  who,  in  a  crisis  of  the  world,  embodied  and  expressed 
the  conscience  and  aspirations  of  mankind,  and  thus  has  found  an  enduring 
place  in  human  history. 

2340  S  Street  N.  W. 

Woodrow  Wilson 

Washington,  D.  C, 
30th  April,  1 92 1. 

My  dear  Dr.  Alderman  : 

It  is  with  heartfelt  regret  that  I  find  myself  unable  to  attend  the  great 
festival  of  the  University. 

I  regard  the  University  with  genuine  affection,  recalling  as  I  do  with  the 
keenest  interest  and  with  many  happy  memories  the  profitable  days  I  spent 
on  her  lawns  and  in  the  stimulating  class-room  where  we  used  to  gather 
about  the  great  John  B.  Minor.  He  was  a  great  teacher,  and  I  hold  myself 
his  permanent  debtor. 

May  I  not  express  the  confident  hope  that,  surrounded  by  her  sons,  the 
University  may  take  on  new  life  ? 

With  affectionate  loyalty  to  the  noble  University; 

Faithfully  yours, 

Woodrow  Wilson. 

Dr.  Edwin  A.  Alderman, 
President,  University  of  Virginia, 
Charlottesville,  Virginia. 

87 


88  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Thursday,  June  2d 
11.00  A.M.  Centennial  Exercises.    The  Amphitheatre 

The    Order    of   the   Procession,    Thursday    Morning 

BAND 

I 

THE  CLASS  OF  1 92 1  IN  DIVISIONS  BY  DEPARTMENTS 

II 
THE  ALUMNI  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  IN   REVERSE  ORDER  OF 
CLASS   SENIORITY 

III 
THE  PROFESSORS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  IN  REVERSE    ORDER 
OF   OFFICIAL   SENIORITY 
FORMER   PROFESSORS   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY 
THE  ALUMNI  TRUSTEES   OF  THE    UNIVERSITY   OF  VIRGINIA 
ENDOWMENT  FUND 
THE    TRUSTEES    OF    THE    MILLER    FUND 
THE   VISITORS   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY   OF    VIRGINIA 
FORMER  VISITORS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 
FORMER    RECTORS    OF   THE    UNIVERSITY 

IV 
GUESTS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY 

V 

DELEGATES  FROM  INSTITUTIONS  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES 
DELEGATES  FROM  INSTITUTIONS  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

VI 
THE  REVEREND  HENRY  WILSON  BATTLE 
THE    RIGHT    REVEREND    DENNIS    JOSEPH    O'CONNELL 

THE  HONORABLE  JOHN   BASSETT   MOORE 

THE    BRITISH   AMBASSADOR   TO   THE   UNITED   STATES 

THE   RECTOR   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY 

THE   governor's  MILITARY   STAFF 

THE    GOVERNOR    OF    THE    COMMONWEALTH    OF    VIRGINIA 

THE   PRESIDENT  OF  THE   UNIVERSITY 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  89 

The  Order  of  Exercises:  The  Amphitheatre 

Invocation:     The    Right   Reverend    Dennis    Joseph 

O'CONNELL,  of  Richmond. 
An  Address:   His  Excellency  Sir  Auckland  Geddes, 
LL.D.,    British    Ambassador    to     the 
United  States 
An  Address  :    The  Honorable  John  B  assett  Moore,  '80, 
LL.D.,    Hamilton    Fish    Professor    of 
International  Law  and  Diplomacy,  Co- 
limibia  University 
Benediction:  Henry  Wilson  Battle,  D.D.,  of  Char- 
lottesville 
Recession,  The  Audience  standing 
3.00  P.M.  Pilgrimage    to   Monticello.     Commemorative  Exercises 
in  honor  of  the  Father  of  the  University  of  Virginia.    The 
Private  Life  of  Thomas  Jefferson  at  Monticello,  by  Richard 
Thomas  Walker  Duke,  Jr.,  '74.    An  Address  by  Archi- 
bald Cary  Coolidge,  Ph.D.,  LL.D.,  of  Harvard  Univer- 
sity 
8.00  P.M.  University   Dinner   to   Delegates   and   Invited   Guests. 
The  Rotunda 

John  Stewart  Bryan,  '95,  A.M.,  LL.B.,  LL.D.,  Rector 
of  the  University  of  Virginia,  presided.  Responses  by 
Jacob  Gould  Schurman,  Ph.D.,  LL.D.,  former  President 
of  Cornell  University;  Anson  Phelps  Stokes,  D.D.,  of 
Yale  University;  Harry  WoODBURN  Chase,  Ph.D.,  Presi- 
dent of  the  University  of  North  Carolina ;  Hugh  Hampton 
Young,  '94,  A.M.,  M.D.,  President  of  the  General  Alimmi 
Association;  and  Thomas  Watt  Gregory,  '84,  A.B., 
LL.B.,  former  Attorney-General  of  the  United  States 

ADDRESSES  ON  THE  THIRD  DAY 

The  President  of  the  University,  introducing  the  British  Ambassador, 
said: 

The  first  speaker  to-day  is  not  unfamiliar  with  the  teacher's  task  or  the 
University's  function,  for  he  has  been  the  one  and  served  the  other.  We, 
therefore,  welcome  him  as  a  scholar  and  fellow  craftsman,  but  most  par- 
ticularly we  welcome  him  as  the  representative  of  the  mother  land  of  this 


90  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Commonwealth  and,  in  a  sense,  of  this  nation.  Possessing  common  ideals 
of  justice  and  law,  similar  standards  of  honor,  habits  of  thought,  and  canons 
of  taste,  the  last  catastrophe  of  civilization  would  be  unfriendliness  between 
England  and  America,  and  the  surest  guarantee  of  peace  and  progress,  their 
continued  amity  and  good  will. 

I  have  the  honor  to  present  His  Excellency,  Sir  Auckland  Geddes, 
British  Ambassador  to  the  United  States. 

ADDRESS  BY  THE  BRITISH  AMBASSADOR 
Sir  Auckland  Geddes,  LL.D. 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

It  is  a  great  personal  pleasure  to  me  to  be  here  to-day  but  it  is  a  greater 
pleasure  that  I  should  be  privileged  to  attend  your  celebrations  as  the 
representative  of  the  British  peoples  and  to  be  able  to  convey  to  you  the 
congratulations  upon  the  great  work  which  this  University  has  performed 
and  is  performing,  as  well  as  to  express  to  you  in  words,  I  fear  inadequate, 
their  sentiments  of  friendship  and  good  will. 

To  this  day  as  in  the  days  of  Queen  EHzabeth,  the  word  "Virginia" 
stirs  in  the  mind  of  the  British  a  feeling  hard  in  detail  to  define  but  not  less 
real,  not  less  cordial,  because  of  that  difficulty.  In  that  feeHng  there  is 
something  perhaps  of  the  spirit  and  mystery  of  adventure,  something  of  the 
idea  of  high-born  lineage  and  courtly  grace,  something  born  of  experience, 
of  the  confident  expectation  of  beauty,  something  of  gallantry,  something  of 
bravery,  coiirage,  loyalty  and  service.  For  reasons  hard  in  detail  to  analyze 
but  at  their  spring  perhaps  connected  with  the  ancient  loyalty  and  affection 
for  a  great  Queen  and  the  tradition  of  what  she  and  the  men  of  her  spacious 
days  stand  for  in  Britain's  story,  but  added  to  and  reinforced  by  the  count- 
less tributaries  of  history  and  the  record  of  your  achievements,  Virginia 
and  all  that  is  hers  holds  in  British  minds  and  British  affections  a  place 
apart  among  the  States  of  this  Republic. 

I  know  that  I  no  more  than  voice  the  feelings  of  the  people  it  is  my  high 
privilege  to  represent  when  I  say  that  they  are  with  you  in  sympathy  and 
spirit  to-day  and  throughout  these  days  when  you  celebrate  the  completion 
of  a  hundred  years  of  your  University  life.  I  wish  that  they  could  have  been 
with  me  here  now,  to  see  with  their  own  eyes  the  beauty  and  grace  of  your 
buildings,  to  feel  in  their  own  souls  the  pulse  of  your  academic  life.  That 
cannot  be;  still  it  is  they  that  extend  to  you  through  me  their  warmest 
greetings. 

Though  the  younger  universities  do  not  know  it  and  by  a  merciful 
provision  of  Providence  cannot  know  it,  no  university  comes  of  age  and 
enters  into  its  manhood  until  it  reaches  the  dawn  of  its  second  century  of 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  91 

existence.  It  takes  time  for  the  soul  of  a  university  to  evolve.  Born  of 
many  men's  minds  and  aspirations  it  is  at  first  too  fluttering,  too  tender  a 
thing  to  hold  its  way  untrammelled  and  unafraid  amid  the  difficulties  and 
influences  which  beset  it.  In  its  early  days  the  strong  man  can  make  or 
mar  the  university,  in  its  manhood  the  soul  of  the  university  makes  or  mars 
the  strongest  man  that  enters  its  portals  as  a  pilgrim  seeking  truth.  Some 
universities,  and  you  are  among  their  number,  have  been  fortunate  in  that 
the  strong  men  of  their  beginning  used  their  minds  and  souls  to  make  not  to 
mar  the  university,  but  that  impulse  would  not  have  persisted  powerful  and 
effective  as  it  has  if  it  had  not  been  reinforced  by  the  minds  of  a  generation 
that  again  knew  suffering  and  sacrifice,  high  endeavor  and  the  glory  of  faith- 
fulness to  the  end.  War  is  in  itself  bad,  but  from  its  badness  there  may  flow 
this  good,  that  lessons  which  in  any  event  life  will  teach  may  be  learned 
sooner  and  more  clearly  and  may  be  applied  by  young  men  who  can  do  what 
old  men  cannot  hope  to  perform. 

Once  again  the  world  has  passed  through  the  furnace  of  war,  once  again 
the  horror  of  the  battlefield,  made  more  horrible  by  science,  has  bitten  deep 
into  the  minds  of  the  nations.  Once  again  for  a  time  they  yearn  for  peace 
but  as  ever,  the  human  mind  is  forgetful  of  horror.  Already  the  memories 
of  the  beastliness  of  war  grow  dim  and  the  recollections  of  the  fellowship, 
the  courage,  the  glories  of  the  human  spirit  rising  triumphant  above  the 
terrors  of  the  body,  grow  bright  and  brighter.  Our  minds  are  straying  back 
to  the  old  circular  path  that  leads  men  to  speak  of  the  honor  of  war  and  then 
of  its  glory  and  just  before  they  again  know  its  horror,  of  its  desirability. 

To  you  as  to  all  universities  that  have  achieved  manhood,  there  falls 
the  duty  of  preparing  your  sons  to  face  the  problems  of  the  world,  not  accord- 
ing to  the  individual  fancies  of  a  man  or  a  small  group  of  men,  but  according 
to  the  knowledge  and  the  experience  that  have  made  the  soul  of  your  Uni- 
versity. You  have  known  war  and  its  horrors.  You  have  seen  your  sons 
march  out  strong  and  lusty.  You  have  m.ourned  and  glorified  those  that  fell, 
but  mourning  and  glorifying  you  have  known  the  pity  of  the  mourning  and 
the  tragedy  of  the  glorification.  I  know  that  the  hour  may  come  to  any 
nation  as  to  any  individual  when  he  has  to  fight  or  die,  perhaps  fight  and  die. 
But  I  also  know  that  not  in  every  war  fought  by  every  nation  was  that  the 
choice.  There  have  been  unnecessary  wars.  There  will  be  so  again,  unless 
you  and  those  like  you  who  are  responsible  for  the  thought  habit  of  your 
sons  consciously  and  actively  strive  to  set  within  their  minds  an  understand- 
ing of  peace,  conceived  not  as  the  absence  of  war,  but  truthfully  as  the 
joyful  acceptation  of  the  reign  of  law.  I  am  often  asked  why  should  the 
universities  concern  themselves  actively  with  the  problems  of  peace.  My 
answer  is  that  they  are  concerned  with  placing  truth  before  the  minds  of 
their  children  and  that  the  true  facts  of  national  life  clamor  aloud  for  peace. 


92  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Here  let  me  interpolate  one  remark.  I  have  noticed  that  when  I,  as 
British  Ambassador,  speak  of  Peace  I  am  usually  supposed  by  some  news- 
paper reporter  to  dread  the  immediate  or  early  outbreak  of  war  between 
your  Nation  and  mine.  May  I  say  that  I  am  not  so  silly.  The  continuance 
indefinitely  into  the  future  of  peace  between  our  peoples  is  so  obvious  a 
necessity  of  our  national  lives  that  I  do  not  dream  of  the  contingency  of  its 
rupture.  What  I  am  concerned  with  is  something  that  seems  to  me  far 
greater  and  far  nobler.  I  wish  to  see  the  English-speaking  peoples  of  the 
world  banded  together ;  in  leadership  of  all  the  nations,  to  the  era  of  world 
peace  and,  as  a  first  step,  to  the  era  in  which  the  wars  which  even  now  we 
can  recognize  as  futile  and  unnecessary,  are  done  with  for  ever. 

I  do  not  wish  at  this  time  to  speak  so  much  of  the  higher  motives  that 
impel  to  peace.  I  have  spoken  of  them  before  and  others  more  able  than  I 
have  poured  forth  their  eloquence  to  raise  man's  mind  to  a  contemplation 
of  their  excellence.  I  abate  no  jot  or  tittle  of  what  I  have  said  in  the  past 
but  abating  nothing  I  think  it  no  derogation  to  speak  of  the  gross  folly  of 
war  and  to  beg  of  this  great  University  that  it  will  see  that  its  sons  and 
daughters,  ere  they  go  forth  to  their  appointed  places  in  the  higher  or  the 
subordinate  leadership  of  their  nation  know  clearly  what  is  the  cost  of  war. 

That  phrase  that  I  have  just  used  "the  cost  of  war"  connotes  some- 
thing much  more  than  the  expenditure  of  money  and  the  loss  of  trade.  It 
connotes  mental  costs  and  physical  costs  hard  to  be  borne  by  the  warring 
generations.  It  also  connotes  burdens  on  their  posterity  that  are  grievous 
to  bear  but  often  overlooked.  It  was  your  own  Benjamin  Franklin  who  said : 
"Wars  are  not  paid  for  in  war  time;  the  bill  comes  later."  That  is  pro- 
foundly true  and  the  bill  that  comes  in  is  a  bill  for  national  vigour  and 
physique,  for  health  and  strength  and  the  happiness  that  is  the  portion  of 
the  hale  and  hearty. 

Many  have  believed  that  there  is  good  in  war — that  it  toughens  the 
natural  fibre  and  purges  the  body  politic  of  slothful  ease.  My  fellow  country- 
man Ruskin  it  was  who  taught  that  war  was  a  stimulant  and  "the  founda- 
tion of  all  the  high  virtues  and  faculties  of  men."  The  best  answer  to  that 
false  doctrine  known  to  me  is  that  of  an  American,  Professor  Starr  Jordan, 
when  he  roundly  declares  that  there  is  precisely  as  much  reason  for  and 
sense  in  the  assertion  that  fire  "is  the  builder  of  the  forest"  since  "only  in 
the  flame  of  destruction  do  we  realize  the  warmth  and  strength  that  lie  in 
the  heart  of  oak. ' '  That  expresses  exactly  what  war  does.  It  burns  up  stores 
of  good  will,  of  high  resolve,  of  unselfish  impulse  not  only,  it  also  bums  up 
the  physical  strength  and  fitness  of  the  people. 

The  biological  effect  of  war  upon  a  people  is  a  subject  of  study  that 
surpasses  in  interest  and  I  believe  in  ultimate  importance  the  whole  of  war's 
economic  effects  which  are  themselves  of  such  interest  and  importance. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  93 

There  is  of  course  close  connection  and  much  action  and  reaction  between 
the  two,  still  they  are  in  reality  as  sharply  defined  the  one  from  the  other,  as 
are  the  problems  of  the  mental  and  moral  effects  of  war  from  either. 

Let  us  look  for  a  few  moments  at  this  biological  problem  and  as  pre- 
liminary let  me  recall  to  your  minds  three  biological  laws : — The  first,  that 
any  pair  male  and  female,  human,  animal  or  vegetable,  which  are  themselves 
of  the  same  kind,  tend  to  have,  that  is  on  the  average  do  have,  offspring  like 
imto  themselves.  That  is,  like  tends  to  beget  like;  the  second,  the  law  of 
filial  regression  formulated  by  Galton  which  I  shall  enter  into  a  little  more 
fully  in  a  moment,  and  the  third,  that  any  race  of  living  things  can  be 
modified  in  either  direction  by  stringent  selection  to  the  limits  of  the  normal 
variation  of  the  race  and  can  with  certainty  be  maintained  at  that  level  so 
long  as  the  stringency  of  selection  is  maintained. 

I  spoke  a  moment  ago  of  the  law  of  filial  regression.  It  is  a  statistical 
generalization  which  is  certainly  true  when  large  numbers  of  living  things 
of  one  kind  are  considered.  It  has  no  bearing  on  and  cannot  be  used  for 
prognostigation  in  individual  cases.  It  is  known  to  be  true  for  the  inheri- 
tance by  human  beings  of  stature,  arm  span,  eye  color  and  mental  faculties 
but  to  apply  it,  it  has  to  be  assumed  that  the  people  under  examination  have 
been  made  homogeneous  by  intermarriage.  Put  very  simply  it  reads  that 
the  children  of  unusual  parents  will  be  less  unusual  than  their  parents.  For 
example,  if  the  parents  are  unusually  tall  or  short  the  children  will  be  less 
unusually  tall  or  short ;  in  other  words,  the  children  digress  towards  the  level 
of  mediocrity  which  is  the  level  of  their  average  ancestor.  Consider  the 
ancestors  you  must  have  had  twenty-five  generations  ago  if  in  your  family 
trees  there  is  no  intermarriage  of  cousins  within  the  25th  degree  of  con- 
sanguinity. Two  parents,  four  grandparents  and  so  on  gives  sixteen  million 
great  great  ancestors  at  or  about  1066,  the  year  of  the  Norman  Conquest  of 
England.  To  find  anything  like  a  fifth  of  that  number  we  who  are  of  blood 
drawn  from  the  British  Isles  would  have  to  derive  something  in  our  origin 
alike  from  kings  and  haughty  peers,  from  pot  boys  and  kitchen  maids,  from 
the  houses  of  the  religious,  from  the  stews  and  sinks  of  the  medieval  cities. 
Similarly  for  all  others  of  European  stock.  We  are  all  without  exception  the 
descendants  of  an  absolutely  average  ancestral  pair,  average  in  their  phy- 
sique, their  manners,  their  morals  and  their  customs  and  it  is  toward  this 
average  man  and  woman  that  the  children  of  the  unusual  tend  to  regress. 

Many  who  meet  with  the  law  of  Filial  Regression  for  the  first  time  find 
difficulty  in  understanding  how,  if  it  be  true,  the  whole  population  is  not  of 
precisely  the  same  height  and  intelligence.  As  a  matter  of  fact  it  does  not 
even  suggest  that  the  population  should  be  uniform.  It  merely  indicates 
that  in  a  homogeneous  population,  favorable  variations,  for  example  good 
stature  or  intelligence,  are  not  to  be  looked  for  in  any  special  social  cUque 


94  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

or  class  but  may  occur  anywhere  over  the  whole  range  of  the  homogeneous 
population.  But  though  this  is  true  it  does  not  mean  that  the  children  of 
the  good  stocks  and  the  children  of  the  bad  will  be  on  the  average  of  equal 
excellence  or  worthlessness.  The  children  of  the  gifted  members  of  a  poor 
stock  may  be  individually  equal  to  the  children  of  two  poor  members  of  a 
gifted  stock,  but  of  the  children's  children  those  of  the  former  will  tend  to 
regress  to  the  mean  of  their  stock,  that  is  to  be  less  gifted,  whereas  those  of 
the  latter  will  tend  to  regress  to  the  mean  of  their  stock,  that  is  to  be  more 
gifted.  The  reason  for  this  is  that  the  nearer  the  ancestor  the  more  he  or  she 
contributes  on  the  average  to  the  total  of  an  individual's  characteristics. 
The  statistically  determined  proportion  gives  the  parents  one  half  of  the 
total  heritage  of  an  individual,  the  four  grandparents,  one  quarter,  the  eight 
grandparents,  one  eighth  and  so  on.  All  this  simply  means  that  though  the 
sons  of  short  men  may  be  tall  and  the  sons  of  stupid  men  clever,  the  average 
grandchild  will  be  short  or  stupid,  though  less  short  or  less  stupid  than  their 
grandparents  were,  whereas  the  sons  of  tall  men  may  be  short  and  of  clever 
men  stupid,  yet  the  grandchildren  will  pull  up  the  average  again,  though 
they  will  not  be  so  exceptional  as  their  grandparents. 

Now  to  gain  a  good  idea  of  the  effect  that  war  will  have  on  the  physical 
and  mental  attributes  of  a  population  all  that  the  biologist  needs  to  know 
besides  these  laws  is,  how  are  the  national  armies  raised,  what  are  their 
casualties,  and  over  what  period  were  they  spread.  Does  the  whole  man- 
hood of  the  nation  of  certain  ages  fight  regardless  of  physique,  intelligence  or 
of  any  other  quality — or  is  there  some  form  of  selection  ?  Are  some  of  the 
men  of  military  age  taken  and  others  left  ?  Or  are  some  of  the  men  put  into 
fighting  units  and  others  into  noncombatant  on  some  basis  of  selection 
other  than  pure  chance  ? 

So  far  we  have  considered  a  homogeneous  population  involved  in  war. 
What  if  it  be  heterogeneous?  Does  it  for  example  consist  of  two  races; 
one  in  reality  ruling,  the  other  in  reality  subject?  Or  is  the  population 
broken  up  into  strata,  degenerates  in  the  slums  of  great  cities,  stunted  clerks 
and  healthy  countrymen  ?  Or  is  there  a  great  class  cleavage  on  the  one  side 
of  which  there  is  light  and  air  and  freedom  to  grow  and  develop,  on  the  other 
insufficient  clothing,  early  toil,  lack  of  food,  filth  and  squalor.  Then  the 
questions  are : 

How  from  such  a  population  is  the  army  raised  ?  In  the  one  case  does 
the  ruling  caste  take  the  burden  of  warfare  on  its  own  shoulders,  in  the 
others  is  there  selective  conscription,  real  universal  service,  or  is  there  a  small 
standing  army  recruited  voluntarily  and  depending  for  its  expansion  in  time 
of  war  on  the  patriotism  of  volunteers  ? 

Obviously  in  an  address  of  this  character  I  cannot  deal  with  each  of 
these  possibilities  of  military  and  national  organization.    Let  us  take  one  or 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  95 

two  examples  and  examine  them.  Let  us  consider  first  the  nation  in  which 
there  is  a  ruHng  caste  which  perforce  assumes  the  burden  of  warfare  and  see 
what  happens  in  an  extreme  case. 

Generation  by  generation  let  us  suppose  the  healthy  virile  men  are 
required  for  the  army  and  leave  a  proportion  of  their  numbers  upon  the 
battlefields.  When  a  young  healthy  man  dies  the  nation  loses  not  only  an 
individual  but  a  potential  line  of  healthy  men,  for  each  is,  in  posse,  the 
founder  of  a  virile  stock.  True  these  soldier  men  may  leave  descendants  but 
many  of  them  will  not  be  in  the  old  homesteads.  Too  often  a  majority  of 
their  offspring  are  found  on  the  frontiers  of  their  nation,  learning  an  alien 
mother's  tongue  and  hatreds  and  an  alien  mother's  creed.  The  true  sons  of  a 
ruling  caste  are  often  taught  to  be  its  bitterest  foes,  while  in  the  old  home- 
steads those  unfit  for  the  army  rule  in  their  dead  brothers'  places  and  father 
the  next  generation.  By  the  law  of  filial  regression  their  sons  will  be  more  fit 
than  they  and  these  will  be  the  recruits  of  the  next  generation  and  their  less 
fit  brothers  the  fathers  of  the  one  to  follow.  So  on  the  process  goes  from 
generation  to  generation,  the  average  ancestor  tumbling  down  and  down 
the  physical  scale  until  in  the  end  defeat  and  destruction  overtake  the 
nation. 

Rome  is  the  great  historical  example  of  the  Empire  that  fell  because  its 
ruling  caste  was  wasted  in  war.  For  centuries  she  relied  upon  the  healthy 
yeoman  farmers  of  the  Apennines  to  form  the  backbone  of  her  army  but  she 
squandered  her  capital  of  manhood.  Professor  Seechs  calculates  that  "Out 
of  every  hundred  thousand  of  her  strong  men,  eighty  thousand  were  slain; 
out  of  every  hundred  thousand  of  her  weaklings  ninety  to  ninety-five  thou- 
sand were  left  to  survive."  Even  if  these  figures  be  only  approximately 
correct,  they  show  how  war  wore  out  Rome,  not  so  much  economically  as  in 
physical  strength  and  energy.  She  debased  her  average  ancestor  and  forced 
the  law  of  filial  regression  to  work  against  her.  But  you  may  say,  that  is  old 
and  long  ago  and  far  away.  As  a  matter  of  fact  biologically  it  is  fairly  recent, 
but  here  is  another  example  more  recent  still.  France  in  the  days  of  Napo- 
leon raised  her  armies  by  conscription  with  a  special  eye  on  the  tall  men 
whom  she  required  to  fill  the  regiments  of  the  guard.  Napoleon  as  we  all 
know  was  a  great  general ;  his  victories  cost  France  two  million  lives.  Those 
gallant  Frenchmen  died  practically  without  issue  in  French  homes  and  they 
were  the  best,  the  tallest,  the  straightest  that  France  could  bring.  The  result 
was  that  the  average  Frenchman  of  1910  was  two  inches  shorter  in  stature 
than  the  average  Frenchman  of  18 10.  Doubtless  the  law  of  filial  regression 
was  carrying  French  statiu-e  back  to  its  old  mean  but  the  time  was  short 
and  the  less  fit  ancestors  of  a  hundred  years  ago  were  too  much  in  the  fore- 
ground for  much  of  the  loss  to  have  made  up,  I  speak  only  of  stature  but 
doubtless  there  were  other  losses  not  dissimilar  in  kind  in  those  that  Rome 


96  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

suffered.  We  know  how  numerically  stagnant  France's  population  was 
when  this  century  opened.  That  was  to  be  expected.  And  France  has 
again  been  bled  white.  It  is  too  soon  to  say  what  the  biological  effects 
of  that  will  be,  but  that  years  are  necessary  to  her  biological  recovery  is 
certain. 

Time  forbids  that  I  go  on  with  these  examples.  My  point  is  this: 
"War  has  to  be  paid  for  in  physical  ill-being  through  generation  after  gen- 
eration." Nations  cannot  squander  their  best  and  maintain  the  standard 
of  their  stock.  Children  tend  to  be  like  the  parents  that  the  nation  lets 
them  have ;  generation  after  generation  the  stock  may  try  to  get  back  to  its 
ancestral  type  but  the  stringent  selection  of  war  such  as  Rome  used  will  in 
the  end  hold  the  population  at  the  level  to  which  selection  modifies  it. 

Nor  need  we  fear  that  peace  will  rot  the  vitals  of  a  nation.  After  two 
centuries  in  which  she  knew  no  war  Japan  proved  her  courage  on  the  battle- 
fields of  Manchuria.  That  is  what  we  should  expect.  As  Professor  Starr 
Jordan  has  well  said :  "  In  time  of  peace  there  is  no  slaughter  of  the  strong, 
no  sacrifice  of  the  courageous.  In  the  peaceful  struggle  for  existence  there 
is  a  premium  placed  on  the  virtues.  The  virile  and  the  brave  survive ;  the 
idle  weak  and  dissipated  go  to  the  wall."  It  is  the  selection  of  peace  not  the 
selection  of  war  that  makes  a  national  stock  grow  strong. 

I  have  left  on  one  side  the  economic  effects  of  war,  more  intense  to-day 
as  the  result  of  the  industrialization  of  the  nations  than  ever  before.  I  have 
not  spoken  of  the  shattered  towns  and  broken  cities,  the  ruined  mills,  the 
flooded  pits.  I  have  said  nothing  of  the  moral  and  mental  devastation  that 
war  causes.  Of  these  I  have  not  spoken  nor  of  the  outrage  that  war  is  to  all 
that  is  best  within  our  souls.  The  indictment  against  war  can  be  made  so 
strong  that  none  who  is  not  perverse  and  foolish  can  gainsay  it.  I  believe 
most  profoundly  that  it  is  the  duty  of  every  university  to  plant,  in  the  minds 
of  its  intellectual  children,  a  true  understanding  of  the  cost  of  war  so  that 
never  light-heartedly  will  they  let  their  nation  turn  to  the  dread  arbitrament 
of  arms.  I  have  acknowledged  that  in  the  world  as  it  is,  the  choice  for  a 
nation  may  be  to  fight  or  die  but  I  believe  that  now  is  the  time  for  the 
English-speaking  peoples  with  their  great  and  peculiar  advantages  to  resolve, 
that  never  again  will  they  permit  this  fair  world  to  be  devastated  by  un- 
necessary war  if  by  standing  firmly  together  they  can  prevent  it. 

What  is  to  hinder  their  cooperation  to  this  great  end  ?  Nothing  that  I 
know  of  but  ignorance  of  each  other's  ideals  and  aspirations  and  the  sus- 
picion that  is  the  child  of  ignorance. 

May  I  say  this  to  you  the  University  of  Virginia — Great  is  your  record 
and  great  are  your  achievements.  Add  blessedness  to  your  greatness  and 
send  forth  your  sons  and  daughters  burning  with  a  high  resolve  to  be  num- 
bered among  the  Peacemakers. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  97 

Introducing  the  next  speaker,  the  President  of  the  University  said: 

The  finest  thing  any  University  can  do  in  this  world  is  to  train  a  man 
who  seeks  the  truth  and  finds  it  and  makes  it  known  to  his  fellows.  We  call 
such  a  man  a  scholar.  Our  next  speaker  is  such  a  scholar  who  has  enlarged 
the  boundaries  of  knowledge  in  his  field,  given  his  spirit  unselfishly  to  youth 
and  served  his  country  with  fidelity  and  devotion. 

I  present  John  Bassett  Moore,  Class  of  '80,  Professor  of  International 
Law  and  Diplomacy,  Columbia  University. 

IMMORTAL  YOUTH 
By  John  Bassett  Moore,  LL.D.,  of  Columbia  University 

We  celebrate  to-day  the  first  hundred  years  of  the  immortal  youth  of 
the  University  of  Virginia.  While  a  university  may  gather  years,  it  should 
never  grow  old.  Neither  with  its  name  nor  with  its  work  should  the  thought 
of  death  or  of  feebleness  be  associated.  So  far  as  it  is  subject  to  the  influence 
of  mortality,  the  things  that  pass  away  should  be  regarded  not  as  lost  but 
merely  as  fructifying  the  soil  for  a  richer  and  more  abundant  harvest.  Thus 
it  is  that  in  the  highest  sense  death  is  swallowed  up  in  victory,  and  that,  so 
far  as  concerns  the  university,  we  should  conceive  of  the  flight  of  years  as  a 
perpetual  resurrection  to  a  new,  a  higher  and  more  useful  existence. 

Approaching  the  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  University  of  Virginia 
in  this  spirit,  we  look  not  only  to  the  numbered  past  but  also  to  the  boundless 
future.  As  we  halt  for  retrospection,  our  minds  are  filled  with  fond  and 
grateful  recollections ;  and  if  we  say,  in  the  words  of  a  great  orator,  that  the 
past  at  least  is  secure,  we  repeat  his  words  in  no  spirit  of  despondency.  On 
the  contrary,  surveying  what  has  gone  before,  we  feel  the  spell  of  the  immor- 
tality which  we  ascribe  to  our  Alma  Mater.  We  think  of  the  devoted  men 
who  in  our  youth  sought  to  light  us  along  the  path  of  life  and  to  point  us 
toward  the  high  destiny  which  by  our  own  efforts  we  might  achieve.  They 
loom  before  us  as  the  sages,  the  wise  and  pious  mentors,  of  our  earlier  years, 
who  explored  the  past  in  order  that  they  might  furnish  us  with  the  lessons 
of  its  experience.  We  recall  them  as  men  of  ripe  learning,  of  exemplary 
character  and  of  lofty  purpose,  who  lived  not  in  order  that  they  might  glorify 
themselves  but  in  order  that  the  world  might  be  better  for  their  having 
lived  in  it. 

Nor,  when  we  recur  to  recollections  such  as  these,  are  we  stirred  merely 
by  the  associations  of  sentiment.  We  are  concerned  with  the  very  substance 
of  things,  with  the  vital  essence  of  the  university's  life  and  power.  To-day 
we  witness  the  widespread  appropriation,  by  many  and  varied  non-academic 
vocations,  of  the  professorial  title ;  but,  although  this  may  be  regarded  as  a 


98  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

recognition  of  the  title's  past  renown,  it  does  not  contribute  to  its  present 
prestige.  Meanwhile,  in  the  promiscuous  strut  of  titular  distinctions,  which, 
by  enabling  the  wearer  perchance  to  gain  an  undeserved  credit,  may  occa- 
sionally serve  even  as  a  cloak  for  imposture,  the  bewildered  public  is  too 
prone  to  lose  sight  of  the  dignity  and  importance  of  the  function  of  the 
teacher.  Who  should  not  be  proud  to  think  of  himself  simply  in  this  char- 
acter? To  be  a  teacher  of  men  not  only  is  one  of  the  noblest,  but  is  one  of 
the  most  responsible  and  most  sacred  of  all  callings.  For  the  teacher  may 
justly  feel  that,  while  he  lives  for  the  present,  the  knowledge  he  imparts, 
and  the  principles  which  he  inculcates,  are  the  things  by  which  the  future  of 
the  world  is  to  be  shaped. 

Therefore,  while  I  have  spoken  of  the  masters  who  filled  the  chairs  of 
this  university  in  my  own  youth,  I  wish  also  to  pay  my  tribute  to  the  de- 
voted men  who  are  upholding  the  traditions  and  carrying  forward  the  task 
of  the  university  to-day.  Their  lot  has  not  been  an  easy  one.  It  may, 
indeed,  be  said  that  the  quick  changes  and  wide  fluctuations  in  our  later 
economic  life  have  been  felt  in  the  universities  with  special  severity.  More- 
over, the  spirit  of  competition  has  invaded  even  the  academic  sphere.  Meth- 
ods formerly  adequate  have  had  to  yield  to  new  demands.  Changes  in 
organization  have  proved  to  be  requisite ;  and  fortunate  was  the  University 
of  Virginia,  when,  the  easy  democracy  of  its  earlier  administration  succumb- 
ing to  the  exigencies  of  the  times,  it  secured,  as  its  executive  head,  one  who 
combined,  in  so  large  a  measure  as  its  first  president  has  done,  the  qualities 
of  character,  patience,  wise  foresight  and  real  eloquence.  He  and  the  loyal 
men  gathered  about  him  have  borne  their  burden  and  performed  their  task 
in  a  manner  worthy  of  their  predecessors,  and  in  a  devout  spirit  of  self- 
forgetfulness  that  entitles  them  to  the  eternal  gratitude  of  the  common- 
wealth. No  provision  that  could  be  made,  for  them  and  for  their  succes- 
sors in  office,  either  by  the  state  or  by  private  benefaction,  could  exceed 
the  measure  of  their  merit  or  the  just  reward  of  their  efforts  to  main- 
tain, to  perpetuate  and  to  advance  the  cause  of  sound  learning  and  public 
service. 

I  have  referred  to  the  life  of  the  university  as  one  of  immortal  youth. 
This  necessarily  implies  that  the  university  must  be  progressive.  No  man, 
no  state,  no  nation  can  stand  still  and  maintain  its  place  in  the  world ;  nor 
does  any  man,  any  state  or  any  nation  deserve  to  hold  its  place  in  the  world 
that  is  content  with  what  has  been  achieved.  Mere  contentment  with  the 
past,  no  matter  where  we  find  it,  means  decay;  the  so-called  happiness  that 
springs  from  placid  satisfaction  with  things  as  they  are,  or  with  exaggerated 
worship  of  things  as  they  have  been,  is  essentially  spurious  and  is  not  a 
blessing  but  an  evil.  Man  was  born  to  labor.  For  this  purpose  he  possesses 
his  faculties,  and  if  he  hides  them  or  permits  them  to  remain  unused  he  justly 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  99 

incurs  the  sentence  cast  upon  the  unfaithful  steward  who  lost  not  only  the 
opportunity  for  profit  but  even  his  original  store. 

As  perpetual  vigilance  is  the  price  of  liberty,  so  perpetual  struggle  for 
higher  and  better  things  is  the  price  that  must  be  paid  for  the  immortality 
of  the  university.  But,  in  striving  for  immortality,  what  are  the  things  for 
which  the  university  should  stand  before  the  world  ? 

I  have  mentioned  the  word  "liberty."  Like  all  things  else,  this  is  a 
relative  concept.  All  mundane  things  are  subject  to  human  conditions ;  and, 
in  spite  of  all  efforts  to  formulate  precise  definitions,  we  are  never  able  to 
find  one  that  is  permanently  satisfactory.  Nevertheless,  there  is  such  a  thing 
as  liberty,  of  the  absence  of  which,  if  we  lack  it,  we  very  quickly  become 
conscious.  In  its  essence,  liberty  means  freedom  of  self -development,  and 
this  freedom  is  to  be  allowed  as  far  as  the  absolute  safety  of  society  will 
permit  individuals  to  determine  for  themselves  what  they  will  or  will  not  do. 
The  university  should,  therefore,  stand  for  liberty,  meaning  the  widest 
possible  freedom  of  thought  and  of  action.  By  no  statesman  or  philosopher 
has  this  principle  been  more  luminously  expounded  or  more  clearly  exempli- 
fied than  by  the  founder  of  the  University  of  Virginia.  Perhaps  one  may 
say  that  if  he  had  been  called  upon  to  designate  the  one  great  principle  to 
the  inculcation  of  which  the  institution  which  he  had  founded  should 
through  all  future  time  be  devoted,  he  would  have  designated  the  principle 
of  human  liberty. 

This  necessarily  leads  us  to  another  thought,  and  that  is  the  principle 
of  toleration.  To-day  we  are  living  in  a  world  still  racked  by  the  passions 
resulting  from  a  great  war.  Human  beings,  instead  of  loving  one  another, 
have  been  fighting  and  killing  one  another.  This  is  a  condition  into  which 
the  world,  as  long  as  we  have  known  it,  has  from  time  to  time  fallen ;  and  at 
such  junctures,  confidence  being  supplanted  with  suspicion,  there  is  a  ten- 
dency to  regard  differences  of  opinion  as  a  menace  and  as  something  to  be 
suppressed.  We  should  ever  be  on  our  guard  against  this  tendency,  alike  in 
society,  in  politics  and  in  religion.  To-day  our  eyes  and  ears  are  constantly 
assailed  with  wholesale  attacks  upon  persons  of  a  particular  faith  or  a 
particular  creed,  attacks  which,  if  not  inspired  by  passionate  excitement, 
would  be  regarded  as  purely  wanton.  Such  things  can  only  be  deplored  as 
manifestations  of  human  traits  which  fortunately  are  manifested  chiefly 
under  abnormal  conditions. 

In  antithesis  to  the  principle  of  toleration,  I  venture  to  mention  another 
word  which  has  come  to  be  characterized  by  base  associations.  I  refer  to 
what  is  now  popularly  known  as  "propaganda"  signifying  in  effect  the 
systematic  dissemination  of  falsehoods  or  perversions  for  political,  commer- 
cial or  other  selfish  purposes.  The  world  is  to-day  rife  with  this  sort  of 
activity,  which  is  by  no  means  confined  to  the  perpetuation  of  bitterness  by 


loo         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

and  between  nations  that  lately  were  enemies.  Stimulated  by  the  war  into 
abnormal  activity,  and  now  practiced  more  or  less  by  all  against  all,  it  seeks, 
with  frenzied  and  unscrupulous  zeal,  in  an  atmosphere  of  universal  sus- 
picion, to  permeate  all  the  relations  of  life  and  to  create  and  foster  ill-will 
among  all  nations,  including  even  those  supposed  to  be  friendly.  Scarcely 
can  one  attend  to-day  a  gathering  for  the  discussion  of  public  questions, 
without  being  treated  to  the  pernicious  productions  of  this  vicious  system, 
which,  finding  their  way  into  the  press  and  into  books  ostensibly  genuine,  are 
glibly  rehearsed  by  persons  whose  position  and  profession  should  cause  them 
to  exhibit  a  greater  sense  of  care  and  of  responsibility. 

A  university,  as  a  seat  of  learning,  should  set  its  face  against  such 
methods.  One  of  the  chief  glories  of  the  university  is  the  fact  that  it  is  a 
place  devoted  to  the  search  for  truth.  A  great  philosopher,  whom  I  read  in 
my  student  days,  declared  that,  if  the  truth  were  placed  on  the  one  hand  and 
the  search  for  truth  on  the  other,  and  he  were  asked  to  choose  between  them, 
he  would  take  the  search  for  truth  as  the  sublime  quest  of  his  Ufe,  Such  is 
the  spirit  of  aspiration,  such  the  insatiate  longing  for  what  is  true,  beautiful 
and  sincere,  that  must  animate  the  university,  if  it  is  to  justify  the  attribu- 
tion to  it  of  the  thought  of  immortality. 

The  word  propaganda  has,  however,  been  associated  in  times  past  with 
a  type  of  thought  and  of  action  altogether  different  from  that  which  has 
lately  made  it  repulsive.  Some  years  ago,  in  the  city  of  Buenos  Aires,  I  saw 
a  volume  which  one  could  not  touch  without  feeling  deeply  moved.  It  was 
a  copy  of  a  translation  of  the  Bible,  into  a  dialect  of  the  Misiones  territory, 
by  some  of  the  fathers,  agents  of  the  Congregatio  de  Propaganda  Fide,  who 
bore  Christianity  to  the  aborigines  of  that  then  remote  and  almost  impene- 
trable region.  Not  only  did  they  make  the  translation,  but  they  printed  it 
in  the  wilderness  at  a  place  even  the  site  of  which  is  to-day  unknown.  This 
they  did  to  save  men.  In  their  holy  zeal  to  carry  salvation,  according  to 
their  belief,  to  unknown  lands,  they  shrank  neither  from  peril  nor  from 
sacrifice.  As  we  think  of  their  helpless  separation  from  the  haunts  of  civil- 
ized life,  of  their  self-denial  and  their  days  and  nights  of  solitary  toil,  we  are 
lost  in  admiration  of  the  men  who  wrought  such  a  token  of  their  faith  and  of 
their  love  for  their  fellow-beings.  Could  there  be  a  more  inspiring  example 
for  those  who  accept  a  teacher's  sacred  trust  ? 

There  is  still  another  thought  that  rises  in  the  mind  in  connection  with 
the  University  of  Virginia  and  its  future.  We  are  accustomed  to  think,  and 
are,  as  I  believe,  justified  in  thinking  of  the  University  of  Virginia  as  the 
first  real  American  university ;  but  it  cannot  be  affirmed  that  this  claim  has 
been  universally  conceded ;  and  it  is  proper  to  say  that  the  claim  rested  not  so 
much  upon  assumed  superiority  of  instruction  as  upon  the  exemplification 
in  the  university's  curriculum  of  the  principle  of  freedom  of  individual 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virgihia'      '  'lot: 

choice  and  the  pursuit  of  studies  along  the  lines  of  one's  individual  pref- 
erences and  aptitudes.  Up  to  a  comparatively  recent  time,  however,  the 
University  of  Virginia  was  universally  admitted  to  be  the  first  university  of 
the  South.  This  position  it  can  hardly  expect  to  hold  in  the  future  in  the 
same  uncontested  sense  as  in  the  past.  Other  universities  have  sprung  up 
in  the  South,  and,  receiving  generous  support  from  public  and  from  private 
benefaction,  have  developed  an  active  and  robust  life  and  have  come  to 
figure  as  vigorous  rivals. 

Nevertheless,  the  University  of  Virginia  to-day  educates  within  its 
halls  students  from  all  quarters  of  the  globe,  and  I  love  to  think  of  it  not  only 
as  a  State  institution  but  as  an  institution  which  is  to  fill  a  distinctive  place 
in  the  life  of  the  nation  and  of  the  world.  For  the  discharge  of  this  exalted 
function  it  needs  vastly  increased  resources;  but  it  also  possesses  an  inestim- 
able advantage  which  mere  material  accessions  cannot  give,  and  that  is  the 
influence  of  its  memories  and  traditions,  and  of  its  association  with  the  name 
and  fame  of  its  founder,  the  great  apostle  of  modern  democracy. 

On  an  occasion  such  as  this,  when  we  bring  to  the  shrine  of  our  Alma 
Mater  our  inmost  thoughts,  an  expression  of  personal  feeling  may  not  be 
out  of  place.  In  my  childhood  there  were  two  names  which  I  was  taught 
peculiarly  to  revere.  These  were  the  names  of  Washington  and  Jefferson ; 
one  the  author  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  and  the  other  the  chief 
architect  of  the  nation.  Subsequently  it  fell  to  my  lot  for  a  number  of  years 
to  occupy  a  public  office  from  which,  whenever  I  looked  out  of  the  window,  I 
saw  the  Washington  monument  and  the  ever-moving  current  of  the  Poto- 
mac; and  as  I  gazed  upon  the  silent  memorial  pointing  to  the  sky,  and 
dwelt  upon  the  character,  the  wisdom,  the  self-control  of  the  first  President 
of  the  first  American  republic,  I  wondered  whether  the  time  might  not  come 
when  the  world,  recalling,  in  the  words  of  Poe,  "the  glory  that  was  Greece 
and  the  grandeur  that  was  Rome, "  might  say  that  in  the  nation  whose  in- 
dependence Jefferson  declared  and  Washington  established  that  glory  and 
that  grandeur  were  combined  and  magnified.  And  then,  as  I  gazed  upon  the 
ever-moving,  ever- widening  stream,  under  the  everchanging  skies,  it  seemed 
to  typify  the  endless  flow  of  the  life  of  the  nation,  finding  its  way  to  the  ocean 
and  permeating  the  farthest  reaches  of  the  boundless  sea  of  human  endeavor. 
So  let  us  think  of  the  immortal  youth  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  ever 
flowing  on,  ever  broadening,  and  permeating  the  intellectual  and  moral  life 
of  the  world. 

In  the  ceaseless,  endless  flow  of  its  intellectual  and  moral  influence,  the 
university  both  conserves  and  creates.  Tennyson  spoke  of  his  generation  as 
* '  the  heir  of  all  the  ages,  in  the  foremost  files  of  time. "  In  a  sense  no  saying 
could  be  more  fallacious  or  more  misleading.  As  he  who  would  be  first  in  the 
Kingdom  of  Heaven  must  become  the  servant  of  all,  so  the  first  requisite  of 


'"io?2''-..'"'Gehtennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

knowledge  is  a  spirit  of  humility,  such  as  renders  us  willing  to  learn.  The 
potentialities  of  heirship  are  severely  limited  by  human  conditions.  We  all 
begin  life  in  the  same  helpless  way,  dependent  on  others  for  existence  and 
physically  and  mentally  groping  about.  But,  as  we  grow  older,  and  become 
more  self-conscious,  we  are  perhaps  not  over-respectful  of  the  wisdom  of  the 
aged.  Indeed,  even  if  it  be  liberally  conceded  that  we  know  the  causes  that 
previously  produced  certain  ill-effects,  we  are  disposed  to  believe  that  their 
similar  operation  may  be  averted  in  the  present  instance ;  and,  obedient  to 
our  possibly  uninstructed  impulses,  we  proceed  to  try  our  own  conceptions 
of  what  is  wise  and  expedient.  The  assumption,  then,  that  we  are  the  heirs 
of  all  the  ages,  representing  the  farthest  human  advance,  should  not  be 
unduly  encouraged.  Such  an  attitude  is  essentially  hazardous,  and,  if  in- 
advertently indulged,  tends  recurrently  to  subject  the  world  to  the  loss  of  a 
large  part  of  its  garnered  treasures. 

For  the  prevention  of  such  loss,  we  look  to  our  seats  of  learning.  While 
the  university  conserves  the  teachings  of  the  past,  it  also  uses  them  for  the 
profit  of  posterity.  In  its  quiet  halls  of  study  and  reflection,  overconfidence 
is  chastened,  so  that  uninformed  aggressiveness  may  neither  mar  the  present 
nor  embarrass  the  future.  The  impulses  of  youth  are  refined  and  wisely 
directed.  The  mind  is  fertilized.  Ideals  are  raised.  Ambition  is  stimulated ; 
and  in  endless  train  there  issues  from  the  gates  the  eager  procession  of  in- 
telligent builders  by  whom  institutions  are  competently  fashioned.  Society 
and  the  state  are  the  gainers ;  life  itself  is  dignified  and  ennobled.  Rejoicing, 
then,  in  our  university  as  the  perpetual  dispenser  of  priceless  benefits,  let  us 
strive  to  maintain  and  strengthen  it  with  all  the  resources  at  our  command, 
placing  above  its  portals  the  words,  "Conserver  of  the  Past,  Creator  of  the 
Future." 

ADDRESSES  AT  MONTICELLO 

THE  PRIVATE  LIFE  OF  THOMAS  JEFFERSON 
By  Judge  Richard  Thomas  Walker  Duke,  Jr.,  of  Charlottesville,  Va. 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

I  deem  myself  peculiarly  fortunate  in  being  asked  to  speak  at  this  time 
and  at  this  place  and  in  this  presence  upon  "The  Private  Life  of  Thomas 
Jefferson." 

We  are  "atmosphered  " — to  use  Goethe's  word — during  these  days  with 
the  thoughts  of  this  great  man's  work  in  the  founding  of  the  Institution 
whose  hundredth  anniversary  we  are  celebrating.  We  forget  for  the  moment 
the  wonderful  brilliancy  of  his  statesmanship,  the  breadth  of  his  philosophy, 
the  depth  of  his  marvelous  intellect.  We  think  of  him  to-day  as  the  Father 
of  the  University  of  Virginia. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  103 

But  I  wish  to  speak  to  you  of  him  as  the  tender  and  solicitous  father  of 
most  affectionate  children ;  as  the  devoted  and  loving  husband ;  the  generous 
neighbor ;  the  good  citizen ;  the  faithful  zealous,  kind  master  of  many  slaves. 
The  place  where  we  stand  suggests  all  these  things.  In  plain  sight  from  yon 
eastern  portico  we  look  down  upon  his  birthplace — upon  the  fields  "where 
once  his  happy  childhood  played."  Here  stands  the  house  he  builded — 
carefully  watched  over  and  preserved  by  its  hospitable  and  patriotic  owner. 
Everything  suggests  the  man.  It  is  the  man  of  whom  I  would  speak.  In  the 
august  presence  of  the  distinguished  visitors  who  face  me  I  am  no  less  for- 
tunate— representing,  as  they  do,  so  many  peoples  and  countries.  They 
may — doubtless  will — keep  in  no  long  memory  the  words  I  may  speak,  but  I 
wish  them  to  remember  the  facts  I  briefly  relate,  so  that  they  may  be  able  to 
recall  those  facts  and  know  that,  great  as  he  was,  Jefferson  was  no  less  great 
in  the  beautiful  characteristics  which  make  up  pure  and  noble  manhood,  and 
that  his  private  life  should  deserve  the  plaudits  of  mankind  no  less  than  his 
public  career. 

And  I  do  this  because  no  man  was  ever  so  foully  belied ;  no  man  more 
wilfully  and  falsely  attacked.  Some  of  us  believe  that  the  ugly  vituperation 
of  greatness — the  besmirching  of  private  character  for  political  purposes — 
has  well-nigh  reached  the  zenith  in  these  later  days;  but  compared  to  the 
attacks  made  on  Jefferson  during  his  lifetime  they  are  but  zephyrs  compared 
to  a  whirlwind.  His  bitter  political  opponents — and  they  were  of  the  bitter- 
est kind — slandered  him  in  every  possible  way.  His  domestic  life,  his  rela- 
tions with  his  slaves,  were  made  the  target  for  the  slings  and  arrows  of  con- 
temptible penny-a-liners  and  paltry  politicians.  These  creatures  seem  to 
have  had  in  mind  what  Sidney  Smith  was  to  say  at  a  future  period :  * '  Select 
for  your  attack  a  place  where  there  can  be  no  reply  and  an  opponent  who 
cannot  retaliate  and  you  may  slander  at  will,"  For  Jefferson  disdained  to 
notice  the  barking  of  these  wretched  curs.  He  was  always  repugnant  to 
"provings  and  f endings  of  personal  character"  and,  too  great  to  reply,  too 
highminded  to  attempt  to  retaliate,  he  stood  firm  in  the  knowledge  that 
those  who  knew  him  best — his  friends,  his  neighbors,  those  who  loved  him — 
knew  him,  and  before  them  he  needed  no  defense.  Even  when  Tommy 
Moore — the  "Little"  man,  the  licentious  verses  of  whose  youth  were  the 
shame  of  his  old  age — sang  of  him  in  vulgar  strains,  it  is  said  that  when  the 
lines  were  read  to  him  he  smiled  and  murmured,  "What  a  pity  poetry  could 
not  always  be  truth  and  truth  ever  poetical." 

Standing  upon  this  mountain  top,  the  purity  of  whose  air  is  no  purer 
than  Jefferson's  private  life,  I  recall  the  beginning  of  his  married  life,  when 
in  a  dark  and  snowy  winter  night  he  brought  his  young  and  beautiful  bride 
to  this  place.  At  Blenheim,  a  few  miles  away  to  the  southwest,  the  deep 
snow  compelled  the  young  couple  to  abandon  their  carriage  and  they  rode 


104         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

eight  miles  to  Monticello.  They  arrived  late  at  night.  The  servants  had 
retired,  the  fires  were  out.  Too  kindly  and  thoughtful  to  awaken  the  sleep- 
ing servants,  they  went  to  yonder  little  office  on  my  left,  and  soon  a  fire  of 
oak  and  hickory  was  blazing  on  the  hearth;  a  bottle  of  old  Madeira  was 
found  on  a  shelf  behind  some  books ;  the  beloved  violin  was  taken  down,  and 
with  song  and  merry  laughter  they  passed  the  night  until  daylight  gleamed 
through  the  lattices.  Here  commenced  a  romance  that  ended  only  when,  in 
the  room  just  behind  me  to  my  left,  in  the  mansion,  a  pure  and  gentle  spirit 
took  its  flight  and  a  bereaved  widower  lay  fainting  by  the  bedside  where  lay 
the  inanimate  form  of  the  only  woman  he  ever  loved,  with  a  devotion  as 
holy  as  it  was  passionate,  and  as  strong  as  it  was  pure. 

It  was  my  good  fortune  to  know  well  that  grand  old  gentleman,  Thomas 
Jefferson  Randolph,  Mr.  Jefferson's  grandson  and  the  staff  of  his  old  age, 
as  he  called  him.  With  him  I  once  roamed  over  this  mountainside  and  went 
in  every  room  of  this  house.  Space  will  not  permit  me  to  tell  you  of  the 
anecdote  after  anecdote  that  this  venerable  man  poured  into  my  all-willing 
ears.  Standing  within  a  few  feet  of  where  I  now  stand  he  pointed  out  the 
office  of  which  I  have  told  you  and  related  to  me  the  instance  I  have  just 
related.  Then  in  a  burst  of  indignation  he  remarked  to  me,  "You  have 
heard  the  miserable  lies  the  dirty  politicians  and  political  enemies  have  told 
of  my  grandfather,  Mr.  Jefferson.  Let  me  tell  you  no  better,  purer  man  ever 
lived.  Neither  I  nor  any  one  else  ever  heard  him  utter  an  oath,  tell  a  story 
he  could  not  have  told  in  the  presence  of  the  most  refined  women,  or  use  a 
vulgar  expression.  He  loved  but  one  woman  and  clave  to  her  and  her 
memory  all  his  long  life,  and  no  father  in  all  the  world  was  more  loving  or 
beloved,  more  solicitous  or  careful  of  his  children." 

He  told  me  then  of  the  book  his  daughter — my  dear  friend,  Sarah  N. 
Randolph — was  preparing,  to  show  the  beautiful  private  life  of  her  sire's 
grandsire — The  Domestic  Life  of  Thomas  Jefferson.  The  copy  of  this  book 
he  gave  my  honored  father  is  one  of  the  most  prized  books  in  my  library. 
It  should  be  re-published. 

No  one  can  read  this  book  without  being  convinced  of  the  peculiar 
sweetness  and  beauty  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  private  life.  No  man  but  of  the 
noblest  character  could  have  written  those  letters  contained  in  this  volume, 
to  his  children  and  friends,  and  as  incident  after  incident  is  related  in  it  we 
recognize  that  it  reveals  indeed  a  man 

"Integer  vitae,  sderisque  pur  us." 

It  is  very  pleasant  for  me  to  say  that  all  of  these  slanders  against  Mr. 
Jefferson  came  from  a  distance.  His  neighbors — and  some  of  them  were  his 
bitterest  political  opponents — never  repeated  them — never  believed  any  of 
them.    I  have  known  in  my  lifetime  more  than  a  dozen  men  who  knew  Mr. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  105 

Jefferson  personally.  Two  men  I  knew  who  saw  Jefferson  and  Lafayette 
embrace  one  another  at  the  foot  of  this  lawn.  Every  one  of  them  said  that 
no  neighbor  of  Mr.  Jefferson  believed  one  word  of  the  vile  stories  told  of 
him,  but  that  he  was  beloved,  respected  and  admired  as  a  high-minded 
gentleman,  a  pure  and  upright  man. 

His  daughters  worshipped  him.  The  grandson  of  whom  I  have  spoken 
could  not  mention  his  name  save  with  a  reverence  as  remarkable  as  it  was 
touching.  When  he  lay  a-dying  at  Edge  Hill,  down  yonder  a  mile  or  two 
away,  he  bade  them  roll  his  bed  into  the  drawing-room,  through  whose 
windows  Monticello  could  be  plainly  seen,  and  his  last  earthly  gaze  was 
upon  this  "Little  Mountain,"  where  beside  his  great  ancestor's  ashes  his 
own  were  soon  to  rest. 

It  cannot  be  amiss  at  this  time  to  say  something  of  the  house  in  front  of 
which  we  now  stand  and  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  life  here.  The  house  was  com- 
menced in  1764.  It  then  faced  to  the  east  and  was  very  much  on  the  order 
of  the  average  Virginia  residence.  But  after  Mr.  Jefferson's  visit  to  France, 
where  he  was  very  much  struck  with  the  architecture  of  that  country,  he  re- 
modeled the  house  in  the  style  in  which  we  now  see  it.  It  has  really  never 
been  entirely  completed.  In  his  lifetime  it  was  filled  with  works  of  art, 
paintings,  engravings  and  statuary,  and  contained  the  largest  private  library 
in  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Jefferson's  life  here  was  that  of  the  simple  Virginia  fanner.  He 
arose  early ;  a  book  always  lay  upon  the  mantelpiece  in  the  dining  room,  and 
if  the  meals  were  not  on  the  table  he  read  from  this  book  until  called  to  the 
meal.  He  generally  rode  over  the  plantation  every  fair  day,  looking  care- 
fully after  the  overseer  as  well  as  the  hands.  He  kept  a  minute  diary  of  all 
the  work  day  by  day  upon  the  plantation,  and  in  it  records  of  the  direction 
of  the  wind,  the  thermometer  and  barometer  were  carefully  set  down ;  the 
budding  of  every  plant  and  tree,  the  first  appearance  of  any  vegetable  upon 
the  table,  and  a  thousand  minutiae  which  fill  us  with  amazement  to  note 
how  a  man  of  his  multitudinous  affairs  could  take  such  minute  pains  over 
things  most  men  would  consider  trifles.  In  the  afternoon  he  attended  to  his 
various  and  varied  correspondence.  Many  of  his  letters  were  written  with 
his  left  hand,  as  his  right  was  seriously  injured  whilst  abroad,  the  wrist  being 
broken.  He  had  an  ingenious  arrangement  by  which  the  light  of  the  candles 
was  shed  upon  his  book  or  paper  and  shaded  from  his  eyes.  His  voluminous 
correspondence  shows  that  he  could  never  have  wasted  a  single  moment, 
but  that  his  long  life  was  filled  with  an  industry  seldom  surpassed.  He  was 
very  moderate  in  his  food  and  drink.  He  very  seldom  touched  ardent  spirits 
but  was  fond  of  good  French  wines  and  had  them  always  on  his  table,  though 
he  partook  of  them  very  sparingly.  He  was  a  moderate  man  in  everything 
except  in  that  which  related  to  the  welfare  of  the  people.    To  advance  that 


io6         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

he  was  perfectly  willing  to  be  called  "Radical"  or  almost  any  other  name 
which  political  opponents  chose  to  give  him.  He  was  a  man  of  wonderful 
self-restraint,  seldom  if  ever  replying  to  any  attack  upon  him  in  any  way  in 
the  public  print,  and  here  at  this  place  which  he  loved  more  than  any  other 
place  upon  earth,  he  spent  the  happiest  and  as  he  says,  the  best  years  of  his 
life. 

As  a  neighbor  Mr.  Jefferson  was  most  kind  and  generous :  Always  ready 
with  counsel  and  often  more  material  aid,  his  advice  was  sought  by  all  the 
countryside,  and  freely  given.  He  planned  homes,  he  suggested  improve- 
ments in  husbandry,  and  whenever  his  superbly  groomed  horse  was  seen 
bearing  him  through  what  was  then  the  little  hamlet  of  Charlottesville  his 
course  was  often  checked  by  those  who  wanted  to  ask  his  advice  or  benefit 
by  his  wonderful  knowledge. 

As  a  citizen  he  took  part — when  at  home — in  everything  that  related 
to  the  welfare  of  the  county  and  State,  giving  to  their  small  affairs  the  same 
thought  and  attention  he  gave  to  the  Nation.  He  was  always  on  the  look- 
out for  improvements  in  agriculture.  You  know  he  invented  the  mould 
board  of  the  plow — a  greater  service  to  humanity,  I  believe,  than  even  the 
great  Declaration.  He  imported  rare  plants  and  seeds;  he  brought  the  first 
seed-rice  into  America.  Nothing  was  too  great  for  the  range  of  his  mind — 
nothing  too  small  to  be  considered,  if  any  good  could  be  found  in  it. 

Of  his  religious  life  we  can  only  say  that  his  faith  was  of  the  Unitarian 
order,  though  he  was  never  a  member  of  any  church.  But  he  contributed 
to  the  building  of  the  first  Episcopal  Church  in  Charlottesville,  and  when 
the  rector  thereof  was  building  himself  a  house  he  sent  him  a  handsome 
contribution,  with  a  playful  letter.  He  never  professed — he  lived.  The 
Searcher  of  all  hearts  alone  knows  what  that  meant.  But  surely  the  faith  of 
that  man  is  not  in  vain  whose  last  words  were  "Lord,  now  let  Thy  servant 
depart  in  peace." 

He  was  the  soul  of  hospitality.  Colonel  Randolph  told  me  that  he  had 
seen  as  many  as  sixty  horses  of  visitors  in  the  stables  at  Monticello  at  one 
time.    He  was  literally  eaten  out  of  house  and  home. 

He  recognized  the  evils  of  slavery,  but  also  its  benefits.  He  desired  to 
emancipate  as  far  as  possible  his  slaves.  As  a  master  he  was  firm  but  kindly 
and  considerate,  and  his  servants  loved  him  with  that  devotion  which  the 
oldtime  slave  ever  showed  to  the  master  who  treated  him  weUi. 

I  must  hasten  to  a  close.  In  the  time  allotted  to  me  I  could  but  briefly 
outline  the  main  characteristics  of  the  private  life  of  this  great  man.  I  said  in 
the  outset  I  deemed  myself  peculiarly  fortunate  in  being  asked  to  do  this. 
For  never  more  than  in  this  hour  of  the  world's  great  changes  is  pure  and 
upright  character  more  needed  in  statesmen — and  men  of  private  life  as  well. 
Only  good  men  can  give  us  good  government;  for  government  is  of  men. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  107 

And  never  was  the  force  of  good  example  needed  more.  And  after  all,  the 
private  virtues  are  those  which  are  of  the  Immortals.  Kingdoms  rise  and 
fall;  governments  perish  with  the  peoples  that  made  them;  philosophies 
change,  and  the  belief  of  to-day  is  the  mockery  of  to-morrow.  But  virtue 
and  truth  and  purity;  benevolence,  integrity  and  the  love  of  God  and  of 
fellow  men — these  things  are  alike  of  yesterday  and  of  to-morrow — of  the 
years  of  the  past,  the  aeons  of  the  future;  they  alone  survive  when  all  else 
perishes.  Of  them  and  through  them  comes  the  health  of  the  nations — the 
salvation  of  the  world.  They  have  their  origin  and  their  destiny  alike  in  the 
home  of  our  Father  and  the  bosom  of  our  God. 


JEFFERSON  AND  THE  PROBLEMS  OF  TO-DAY 
By  Archibald  Gary  Coolidge,  Ph.D.,  LL.D.,  of  Harvard  University 

This  Spot  and  this  occasion  recall  to  the  minds  of  all  of  us  memories 
of  the  man  in  whose  honor  we  have  made  this  pilgrimage.  We  are  here  at 
the  place  that  was  dearest  to  him,  at  the  home  from  which  the  influence  of 
his  wisdom  and  his  benign  presence  radiated  for  so  many  years  over  his 
fellow  countrymen.  You  have  just  heard  the  description  of  his  daily  life. 
It  is,  indeed,  here  that  his  figure  is  most  distinct  to  us,  that  we  think  of  him 
in  his  kindliest  aspect,  an  object  of  affection  as  well  as  of  admiration  to 
millions  then  and  since.  It  was  here  that  he  planned  and  dreamed  and 
brought  into  being  the  University  of  Virginia.  To  us  this  visit  to  Monti- 
cello  is  in  itself  a  source  of  inspiration.  It  brings  us  once  more  under  the 
spell  of  a  lofty  character  and  master  mind  whose  influence  has  not  been 
confined  to  one  party,  but  has  extended  over  the  whole  people  and  has  been 
felt  even  by  those  who  opposed  him  most,  and  it  has  not  been  effaced  by  the 
lapse  of  time.  Thomas  Jefferson  still  holds  his  place  as  one  of  the  guides  of 
our  republican  ideals  and  citizenship.  His  words  are  still  quoted  and  the 
truths  that  he  expressed  are  still  held  sacred. 

And  if  this  be  so,  is  it  not  natural  for  us  when  we  feel  ourselves  in  the 
shadow  of  his  presence  to  turn  to  him  for  counsel  and  help  in  dealing  with 
some  of  the  momentous  problems  which  beset  our  paths  as  American  citi- 
zens? May  we  not  obtain  guidance  from  his  wisdom  even  under  circum- 
stances which  he  himself  never  could  have  foreseen?  At  least  one  may 
speculate  as  to  what  he  would  have  thought  of  them,  and  such  fancy  need 
not  be  idle.  It  is  true  there  are  dangers  in  such  a  course.  We  must  be  care- 
ful how  we  apply  any  one  concrete  pronouncement  on  the  part  of  Jefferson 
to  an  altered  situation ;  what  was  a  wise  decision  under  former  conditions  is 
not  necessarily  the  one  that  he  would  now  make. 

We  know,  too,  that  like  every  mortal  he  was  not  always  consistent; 
that  in  his  long  career  he  was  deeply  involved  in  the  strife  of  his  times  and 


io8  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

that  he  used  terms  and  expressed  opinions  which  reflect  rather  the  passions 
or  the  prejudices  of  the  moment  than  the  mature  judgments  of  his  riper 
thought. 

Nevertheless,  while  making  all  such  allowances,  we  may  feel  that  Jeffer- 
son entertained  certain  ideals,  certain  visions,  certain  fundamental  beliefs, 
to  which  we  may  turn  and  apply  the  inspiration  we  drew  from  them  to 
problems  of  our  own  times. 

Let  us  look  at  some  of  these  beliefs. 

Would  it  not  be  fair  to  say  that  the  first  and  foremost  article  in  Jeffer- 
son's political  creed  was  his  unshakable  faith  in  democracy  and  particularly 
in  American  democracy? 

We  may  quibble  as  we  please  over  the  exact  meaning  of  the  term 
"democracy"  but  no  one  can  deny  that  Thomas  Jefferson  was  a  democrat 
in  the  best  sense  of  the  word  and  we  may  well  rejoice  at  the  extent  that  his 
ideals  have  prevailed  and  are  prevailing  far  and  wide. 

Rank  and  title  mean  little  enough  to-day.  Universal  suffrage  has  been 
broadened  to  include  those  whom  it  has  always  been  the  privilege  of  man  to 
love  and  to  protect  but  to  whom  he  has  never  before  admitted  a  right  to  rule 
equal  to  his  own. 

Has  then  democracy  triumphed  so  that  we  have  no  fears  for  the  future 
save  such  as  may  arise  from  its  own  excesses  ? 

No  one  should  assert  this.  Here  as  elsewhere  there  is  still  a  long  gap 
between  theory  and  practice.  The  power  of  wealth,  inherited  and  acquired, 
still  counts  for  much  in  the  world,  the  conscienceless  capitalist  too  often  is 
the  successor  of  the  robber  baron,  and  modern  economic  development  with 
its  tremendous  accumulation  of  capital,  its  infinite  ramifications  and  its 
necessary  concentration  of  authority  has  seemed  to  threaten  us  with  a 
servitude  as  real  as  any  which  has  existed  under  crown  or  aristocracy.  But 
this  peril  is  not  new,  and  provided  we  maintain  our  honesty,  we  can  achieve 
the  new  freedom  as  well  as  the  old.  Vigilant  as  we  must  be  to  defend  our 
heritage  against  the  insidious  power  of  corporate  wealth,  it  is  not  from  that 
quarter  that  the  ideals  of  Jeffersonian  democracy  are  most  undermined  at 
the  present  moment.  Our  liberties  may  be  imperilled  but  the  menace  has 
taken  on  new  forms.  For  instance  we  can  see  that  society  is  in  danger  of 
becoming  the  slave  of  its  own  development.  In  the  endless  meshes  of  the 
modern  state  and  of  modern  industrial  and  economic  conditions  the  in- 
dividual can  hardly  aspire  to  be  as  free  as  were  his  ancestors.  The  ' '  sum  of 
good  government"  has  increased  in  a  formidable  manner  since  the  days 
when  Jefferson  was  at  the  helm  of  the  state.  It  looks  ahnost  as  if  in  the 
future  the  existence  of  the  American  citizen  from  the  cradle  to  the  grave  will 
be  regulated  by  prescriptions.  They  are  perhaps  necessary  for  the  welfare 
of  our  wondrously  organized  system.     But  we  are  in  danger  of  paying  a 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  109 

heavy  price  in  the  sacrifice  of  the  freedom  of  the  individual  citizen  which 
Jefferson  regarded  as  one  of  the  highest  privileges  of  mankind.  If  the  march 
of  civilization  appears  to  demand  that  sacrifice,  let  us  at  least  trust  that  it 
may  not  be  too  complete  and  refuse  to  make  it  save  when  there  is  real 
necessity.  We  shall  do  well  to  remember  that  in  creating  the  most  perfect 
machine,  when  its  parts  are  human  beings,  the  more  scope  we  can  safely 
give  to  each  to  think,  act,  and  even  make  mistakes  for  himself,  the  more  we 
do  to  preserve  what  has  been  one  of  the  best  characteristics  of  the  American. 
Even  efficiency  may  be  bought  at  too  high  a  price. 

But  slavery  to  the  machine  which  we  ourselves  have  helped  to  create 
is  not  the  only  menace  to  our  liberties.  The  democracies  of  free  people  are 
now  being  compelled  to  face  the  threat  of  a  new  despotism.  Just  when  it 
has  seemed  that  the  idea  of  equal  opportunity  to  all  and  the  right  of  the 
majority  to  prevail  were  becoming  the  acknowledged  basis  of  society  for  the 
whole  civilized  world,  we  have  witnessed  a  sudden  reaction  towards  a  new 
oligarchy.  The  claim  of  one  class  to  dominate  regardless  of  the  rest  has  been 
set  forth  from  a  new  quarter  in  startling  form.  The  red  apostles  of  commun- 
ism have  declared  ruthless  war  against  the  whole  conception  of  true  democ- 
racy and  in  order  to  secure  their  sectarian  triumph  they  are  prepared  to  shed 
torrents  of  blood  and  if  need  be  to  stamp  out  civilization  itself.  They  have 
established  their  rule  in  the  largest  continuous  empire  in  the  world  and  by 
terror  they  hold  to-day  under  their  control  a  hundred  million  of  their  fellow 
beings.  They  have  sent  their  emissaries  abroad  and  they  have  their  fol- 
lowers in  all  lands,  even  in  our  own,  appealing  by  every  argument  to  the 
ignorant,  to  the  dreamer,  and  to  the  discontented,  to  all  indeed  who  have 
suffered  under  our  present  system  of  society  and  can  be  deluded  into  imagin- 
ing that  its  overthrow  would  bring  about  a  millennium. 

In  combating  the  infection  of  such  ideas  the  strong  and  healthy  demo- 
cratic beliefs  of  Jefferson,  his  confidence  in  the  essential  goodness  of  human 
nature  if  given  a  free  chance  to  develop,  his  doctrine  of  the  utmost  liberty  to 
the  individual  compatible  with  the  welfare  of  the  state,  and  of  the  safety 
with  which  error  may  be  tolerated  when  reason  is  left  free  to  combat  it,  offer 
us  the  best  grounds  on  which  to  take  our  stand.  It  is  true  that  society  must 
defend  itself  when  attacked,  that  we  cannot  allow  conspiracies  to  be  hatched 
in  our  midst  against  all  we  hold  most  dear,  that  the  right  to  poison  the  public 
mind  is  not  a  God  given  one.  But  though  alien  and  sedition  bills  may  be 
more  necessary  now  than  they  were  in  the  early  days  of  the  republic,  it  is 
not  by  blind  repression  alone  any  more  than  it  was  then  that  perils  can  be 
conjured.  We  must  avoid  panic  and  reaction  and  all  that  savors  of  persecu- 
tion unless  we  wish  to  give  to  whatever  revolutionary  spirit  there  is  in  our 
midst  a  moral  force  which  now  it  lacks.  Against  the  perils  of  revolutionary 
propaganda  and  discontent,  it  is  not  enough  to  fall  back  on  mere  measures 


no         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

of  repression.  The  counsels  of  terror  are  seldom  wise,  and  the  ultra  conserv- 
ative breeds  the  revolutionary.  While  striving  to  right  the  many  evils  that 
exist  in  our  own  as  in  every  other  social  system,  we  must  have  faith  not  only 
in  the  virtue  of  our  institutions  but  in  their  strength  and  in  the  spirit  which 
they  are  meant  to  express.  The  calm  broad  vision  of  the  sage  of  Monticello 
is  often  sadly  lacking  among  us.  The  excesses  and  horrors  that  accom- 
panied the  French  Revolution  did  not  shake  his  trust  in  popular  government 
and  the  progress  of  humanity.  Those  of  the  Russian  one  would  not  do  so 
were  he  alive  to-day. 

Turning  from  our  domestic  situation  to  our  foreign  one,  where  the 
difficulties  if  of  less  fundamental  magnitude  are  even  more  pressing,  what 
lessons  has  Jefferson  to  teach  us  there?  A  famous  passage  from  his  first 
inaugural  address  comes  to  our  minds :  "peace,  commerce,  and  honest  friend- 
ship with  all  nations — entangling  alliances  with  none."  Surely,  we  say,  a 
wise  principle,  one  well  tested  in  the  history  of  this  country  and  one  that  it 
would  be  folly  to  abandon  now.  But  are  we  so  certain  of  what  should  be  its 
present  interpretation  ?  Has  it  been  in  no  way  modified  or  broadened  by  the 
enormous  changes  that  for  good  and  for  ill  have  brought  all  parts  of  the 
globe  so  infinitely  nearer  to  one  another  than  they  were  a  century  ago  ?  Do 
we  even  know  what  we  mean  by  "entangling  alliances?"  Is  not  an  inter- 
national convention  of  any  kind,  whether  it  deals  with  commerce  or  patents, 
or  with  rules  relating  to  the  Red  Cross,  an  entanglement  in  the  sense  that  it 
is  a  limitation  to  our  complete  freedom  of  isolated  action?  Has  not  the 
whole  development  of  the  last  hundred  years  tended  to  emphasize  the 
necessity  of  cooperation  in  all  good  works  between  nations  as  well  as  be- 
tween individuals  ?  Is  there  any  reason  in  the  nature  of  things  why  such  co- 
operation should  not  be  beneficial  in  political  affairs  as  well  as  in  economic 
or  in  sanitary  ones,  and  is  an  alliance  anything  but  a  promise  of  mutual 
cooperation?  All  these  considerations  are  not  to  be  lightly  dismissed  in 
favor  of  a  literal  interpretation  of  a  maxim  enunciated  in  a  very  different 
world. 

To  many  of  his  contemporaries,  Thomas  Jefferson  seemed  what  to- 
day would  be  called  a  pacifist.  At  one  time  he  appeared  to  submit  with 
tameness  to  buffets  at  the  hands  of  both  England  and  France.  But  he  was  a 
statesman  not  a  mere  theorist.  His  conduct  of  this  country's  disputes  at 
that  juncture  may  not  be  a  brilliant  page  in  his  career,  but  under  extreme 
difficulties  he  made  no  sacrifice  of  principle  and  each  year  that  he  preserved 
peace  the  country  gained  in  strength.  He  showed  more  than  once  in  his 
career  that  when  the  moment  came  for  decisive  action  he  could  be  resolute, 
and  he  did  not  shrink  from  the  gravest  responsibilities.  As  the  last  resort  he 
was  ready  to  take  up  arms  if  the  honor  of  his  country  demanded  it.  Even 
expeditions  overseas  had  no  terrors  for  him.    By  dispatching  an  American 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  m 

fleet  to  wage  war  on  Tripoli  he  set  Christian  Europe  an  example  of  how  to 
put  an  end  to  the  shameful  tribute  it  had  been  the  custom  to  pay  to  a  nest  of 
pirates  in  order  to  be  spared  from  their  depredations. 

Everything  we  know  of  the  character  and  views  of  Jefferson  makes  us 
confident  that  if  he  had  been  alive  at  the  time  of  the  Great  War  he  would 
have  approved  of  the  sending  of  our  soldiers  to  lay  down  their  lives  for  their 
country  and  its  cause  on  the  battlefields  of  France.  The  sympathy  which 
he  felt  for  the  first  French  republic  would  have  gone  out  in  far  larger  measure 
to  the  present  one  and  none  would  have  felt  more  than  he  that  the  liberties 
of  mankind  would  be  menaced  by  the  triumph  of  military  imperialism.  He 
would  have  known,  too,  that  our  task  would  not  be  finished  or  our  burden 
be  lifted  by  the  close  of  hostilities,  but  that  we  must  and  shall  share  in  the 
vast  work  of  the  reconstruction  of  the  world.  Duty  like  charity  begins  at 
home,  it  does  not  end  there. 

We  may  perhaps  doubt  just  what  form  of  league  or  association  or 
brotherhood  of  peoples  Thomas  Jefferson  would  now  wish  to  see  established, 
a  brotherhood  in  which  this  country  of  ours  should  hold  its  proper  place. 
But  we  cannot  doubt  that  with  his  whole  heart  and  soul  he  would  have  been 
devoted  to  some  such  ideal  of  fraternity.  The  "Parliament  of  man,"  the 
"federation  of  the  world"  would  be  for  him  no  mere  empty  phrase.  Un- 
dismayed by  the  cataclysms  which  we  have  just  witnessed  and  are  still 
witnessing,  he  would  put  his  faith  in  his  fellow  creatures,  and  particularly 
in  his  fellow  countrymen.  He  would  believe  it  to  be  their  proud  privilege 
to  lead  rather  than  to  follow  in  all  .movements  for  the  common  welfare. 
While  condemning  visionary  crusades  or  neglect  of  our  own  problems  he 
would  recognize  our  obligations  to  struggling  humanity  at  home  or  abroad. 
We  who  honor  his  name,  let  us  live  true  to  his  spirit.  We  have  proved  as  a 
nation  that  we  could  fight  for  our  ideals.  Now  that  peace  has  come  we  must 
beware  "lest  we  forget,  lest  we  forget." 


SPEECHES  AT  THE  DINNER  TO  DELEGATES 

response  by  jacob  gould  schurman,  ph.d.,  ll.d.,  former  president  of 

cornell  university 
Mr.  Chairman: 

This  splendid  dinner,  so  characteristic  of  the  generous  hospitality  of  the 
South,  marks  the  close  of  three  of  the  four  days  set  apart  for  your  Centennial 
Celebration. 

It  is  difficult  to  imagine  what  remains  for  you  to  do  to-morrow.  Cer- 
tainly the  past  three  days  have  been  for  us  all  days  of  noble  and  elevated 
joy.    We  have  been  genuinely  conscious  of  a  fraternal  communion  and  inter- 


112  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

change  of  spirit  and  sentiment.  Not  only  the  speakers,  but  the  great  com- 
pany of  delegates  and  visitors  have  joined  in  the  well-merited  congratula- 
tions and  cordial  good  wishes  which  the  speakers  brought  you  on  behalf  of 
sister  institutions. 

Have  the  triumphs  of  truth  and  reason  in  this  University  been  elo- 
quently set  forth?  The  silent  auditors,  as  you  might  have  recognized  from 
many  signs  of  approval,  make  those  eloquent  tributes  their  own.  Has  the 
influence  of  this  University  in  molding  the  religious  life  of  the  Nation  been 
justly  assessed?  The  audience  joins  you  in  the  testimony  that  man  lives 
not  by  bread  alone — nor  yet  by  bread  and  science  together.  Have  you  set  up 
memorials  to  your  heroic  dead?  In  the  presence  of  your  tears,  in  the  hear- 
ing of  your  prayers,  we  bow  our  heads  and  devoutly  give  thanks  that  the 
University  of  Virginia  has  been  so  preeminent  in  the  training  of  men  for  the 
service  of  the  Republic. 

Not  only  oratory,  you  have  invoked  also  music  and  art  and  pageantry 
to  give  worthy  expression  to  the  spirit  of  this  occasion.  And  the  spirit  seems 
to  me  as  manifold  as  the  media  of  its  expression  are  varied.  No  doubt  the 
primary  note  is  the  exaltation  of  the  scientific  and  scholarly  mind,  for  the 
formation  of  which  universities  were  called  into  being  and  after  the  lapse  of 
so  many  centuries  still  continue  to  exist  and  flourish.  But  life  is  more  than 
intellect.  And  the  university  is  in  close  and  friendly  alliance  with  the 
church,  the  state,  and  every  other  institution  which  makes  for  the  improve- 
ment and  advancement  of  mankind.  Thus,  most  appropriately,  you  have 
made  your  high  celebration  a  means  not  alone  of  stimulating  intellect,  but 
also  of  awakening  historical  imagination,  of  quickening  patriotism,  and  of 
deepening  the  sense  of  the  religious  significance  of  life. 

All  this  might  have  been  done,  nay,  all  this  I  have  seen  done,  by  other 
universities  at  home  and  abroad.  But  there  is  one  feature  of  your  Celebra- 
tion which  is  absolutely  unique.  No  other  historic  university  could  have 
arranged  to  make  a  pilgrimage  to  the  home  of  its  founder  and  under  the  very 
roof  where  he  spent  his  mortal  days  pay  honor  to  his  memory  as  we  this 
afternoon  at  Monticello  all-hailed  the  Father  of  the  University  of  Virginia. 

There  is  often  a  contrast,  which  may  amount  even  to  contradiction, 
between  the  founders  and  benefactors  of  colleges  and  universities  and  the 
proper  ideals  of  the  institutions  which  they  have  called  into  existence.  The 
things  which  give  them  pleasure,  the  objects  they  pursue  from  day  to  day, 
the  literature  they  read,  the  thoughts  which  make  the  furniture  of  their 
minds,  may  be  entirely  alien  to  the  life  of  the  devoted  scholar  or  scientist. 
And  their  conception  of  his  function,  and  of  the  ways  and  means  of  perform- 
ing it,  are  likely  to  differ  entirely  from  his.  Here  lies  the  possibility  of  fatal 
collisions!  The  millionaire  benefactor,  apart  from  his  benefaction,  has 
seldom  been  an  object  of  enthusiasm  either  on  the  part  of  teachers  or 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  113 

students.  Nor  can  I  imagine  that  Henry  VIII  or  even  Wolsey  was  ever 
regarded  as  an  exemplar  for  the  young  gentleman  of  Christ  Church.  It  was 
not  merely  cynicism  that  inspired  Goldwin  Smith's  bon  mot  that  the  proper 
place  for  a  Founder  was  in  marble  effigy  in  the  College  chapel ! 

The  University  of  Virginia  is  in  this  regard  fortunate  in  her  Founder. 
No  doubt  Jefferson's  thorough-going  democracy  predisposed  him  in  some 
matters  to  defer  too  much  to  popular  opinion ;  and  the  principle  of  vox  populi 
vox  dei  is  fatal  to  the  life  of  a  university.  But  it  was  only  in  politics  that  he 
would  determine  truth  by  counting  noses.  In  other  spheres  he  insisted  on 
evidence,  and  if  evidence  were  lacking  he  suspended  judgment.  In  this 
respect  he  was  the  very  embodiment  of  scientific  method.  Indeed,  all  things 
considered  and  all  necessary  abatements  made,  you  will  find  a  remarkable 
harmony  between  the  mental  postulates,  operations,  and  outlook  of  Jefferson 
and  the  spirit  of  a  genuine  university.  Here  and  now  I  can  signalize  only 
one  or  two  of  these  features. 

In  the  first  place,  Jefferson  was  above  everything  else  an  idealist. 
Those  who  would  disparage  him  called  him  an  impractical  visionary.  Cer- 
tainly he  was  ready  to  theorize  on  any  subject  which  engaged  his  thought. 
The  force  of  his  penetrating  intelligence  could  not  be  restrained  by  any 
convention,  however  respectable,  or  by  any  tradition,  however  venerable. 
He  was  a  thinker  who  must  see  and  understand  for  himself.  The  dread  of 
new  ideas,  which  is  a  universal  characteristic  of  mankind,  had  no  place  in  the 
composition  of  that  daring  spirit.  On  the  contrary,  the  fact  that  a  theory 
was  new  commended  it  to  one  who,  like  Jefferson,  ardently  believed  in 
progress  and  zealously  strove  for  the  advancement  of  mankind.  He  did  not 
mind  being  branded  as  a  radical  or  a  revolutionist.  His  sanguine  taste  for 
novelty  was  exhibited  in  all  his  activities — in  agriculture,  in  which  he  was  all 
his  life  an  enthusiast,  as  well  as  in  politics,  in  which  for  forty  years  he  was  an 
unrivaled  leader.  And  no  consequences  deterred  him  from  following  the 
principles  he  had  embraced  to  their  logical  conclusions.  If  the  "rights  of 
man  "  signified  to  his  mind  an  almost  entire  absence  of  governmental  control 
he  did  not  hesitate  to  declare  that  ' '  a  little  rebellion  now  and  then  is  a  good 
thing." 

Now  this  hospitality  to  new  ideas,  even  to  the  extent  of  being  en- 
amoured by  their  novelty,  and  this  readiness  to  follow  new  ideas  whitherso- 
ever they  lead — till  they  eventually  proved  themselves  true  or  false — is  the 
animating  spirit  of  a  genuine  university.  On  this  more  than  anything  else 
whatever  the  intellectual  progress  of  mankind  depends.  Has  not  Darwin, 
indeed,  taught  us  that  the  evolution  of  life,  from  lower  to  higher  forms,  is  due 
to  the  survival  of  characteristics  which  on  their  first  appearance  can  only  be 
described  as  "sports"  or  freaks?  And,  in  the  realm  of  mind  it  is  just  by 
means  of  the  "freakish"  ideas  of  dreamers  and  visionaries  that  successive 


1 14         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

steps  of  progress  are  effected.  In  the  highest  conception  of  it  a  university 
is  an  organ  for  the  creation,  development  and  dissemination  of  new  ideas. 

I  do  not  recall  any  time  when  this  high  and  vital  function  of  the  uni- 
versity stood  in  need  of  greater  emphasis.  We  are  to-day  living  in  one  of 
those  periods  of  reaction  which  invariably  follow  war.  The  exhibition  of 
physical  power  which  for  four  and  a  half  years  convulsed  the  world  still 
dominates  our  habit  of  thought.  The  invisible  world  of  ideas  seems  weak 
and  insignificant  beside  that  colossal  empire  of  all-compelling  might.  And 
if  the  two  come,  or  appear  to  come,  into  conflict  men  invoke  force  to  sup- 
press new  theories,  which  can  always  be  branded  as  dangerous,  if  not  also 
disloyal.    But  vis  consili  expers  mole  ruit  sua. 

Now  the  university  is  the  nursery  of  new  ideas.  Its  members  are,  in  the 
fine  phrase  of  Heine,  "knights  of  the  holy  spirit" — the  holy  spirit  of  truth 
and  culture.  I  trust  that  a  fresh  dedication  to  that  noble  service  may  be  one 
of  the  results  of  this  celebration  of  the  Centennial  of  the  University  founded 
by  Jefferson. 

There  is  a  second  service  rendered  by  Jefferson  to  this  University  which 
you  will  perhaps  grant  me  the  time  briefly  to  mention.  I  can  describe  it 
best  by  contrast.  All  institutions  tend  to  lose  themselves  in  their  own  in- 
strumentalities. A  university  has  buildings  to  care  for  and  funds  to  invest 
and  enlarge  and  routine  business  to  administer.  But  a  university  is  a  spirit- 
ual institution.  It  has  to  do  with  mind,  and  exists  for  mind.  The  danger 
to-day  is  that  the  real  university  shall  be  submerged  by  its  "plant"  and 
"business." 

Are  not  universities  corporations  ?  And  should  they  not  be  conducted 
like  financial  or  manufacturing  corporations?  Nay,  should  not  heads  for 
them  be  found  in  the  offices  of  Wall  Street  or  the  factories  of  Pittsburg? 
These  are  the  questions  we  hear  in  the  marts  and  markets  to-day. 

In  contrast  with  the  implications  of  these  questions,  stands  Jefferson's 
just  and  noble  conception  of  a  university.  He  clearly  perceived  that  it  was 
the  Faculty  that  made  the  University.  And  that  the  Faculty  might  not  be 
dislodged  from  the  high  place  that  naturally  belonged  to  it,  he  would  have 
no  president  at  all  but  leave  the  administration  of  the  institution  in  their 
hands. 

I  think  Jefferson  sacrificed  to  this  fine  idea  the  obvious  means  of  ad- 
ministrative eflficiency.  And  I  argued  that  thesis  in  a  long  letter  fifteen  or 
twenty  years  ago  when  your  Trustees  did  me  the  honor  of  soliciting  my 
opinion  regarding  the  creation  of  the  presidential  office  in  this  University. 
Undoubtedly  the  course  of  university  development  in  the  United  States 
had  made  such  an  office  a  necessity.  But  even  that  reform  would  have  been 
purchased  too  dearly,  if  it  had  involved  the  abandonment  of  Jefferson's 
conception  in  respect  of  the  supremacy  rightfully  belonging  to  the  Faculty. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  115 

Nothing  whatever  can  change  the  fact  that  in  relation  to  the  teachers  and 
investigators,  not  only  all  material  appliances,  but  also  all  governing  and 
administrative  officials — even  the  highest — exist  solely  that  they  may  do 
their  work  in  quiet  and  freedom  and  utter  devotion  with  the  minimum  of 
distraction  and  the  maximum  of  efficiency. 

Happily  the  University  of  Virginia  found  the  right  man  for  the  new 
office.  We  join  you  in  rejoicing  over  the  success  of  President  Alderman's 
administration !  Long  may  he  continue  to  go  in  and  out  among  you  as  your 
intellectual  leader  and  the  worthy  exponent  of  your  spirit. 

But  though  methods  of  administration  vary,  Jefferson's  conception  of 
the  place  and  function  of  the  Faculty  is  so  true  and  precious  that  the  Uni- 
versity can  never  afford  to  part  with  it.  It  is  through  the  eminence  of  its 
professors  that  the  University  of  Virginia  has  attained  the  great  influence 
and  the  high  standing  which  it  to-day  enjoys.  May  their  tribe  continue  and 
increase !  So  shall  the  noble  University  which  they  serve  and  of  which  all 
America  is  proud  fulfill  the  universal  heart's  desire:  Semper  Floreat! 


response  of  reverend  anson  phelps  stokes,  d.d.,  of  yale  university 

Mr.  Rector,  Mr.  President,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  : 

I  hardly  recognize  myself  in  the  highly  colored  picture  which  the  Toast- 
master  has  so  generously  painted  of  my  character  and  work.  His  estimate 
was  evidently  not  shared  by  the  officers  of  a  publication  in  Chicago  with 
some  such  title  as  "Distinguished  Young  Americans"  who  recently  wrote 
me  enclosing  a  sketch  of  my  life  from  Who's  Who  and  added,  "you  are  not 
quite  up  to  our  standard,  but  if  you  will  forward  $io  we  will  include  sketch 
of  your  life ! "  However,  a  local  undertaker  in  my  home  town  thinks  better 
of  me,  for  he  recently  asked  me  to  join  the  Cooperative  Burial  Association. 
I  told  him  that  I  did  not  feel  so  inclined,  but  would  like  to  know  the  condi- 
tions. He  replied  that  if  I  would  pay  $io  down  and  $5  a  year  they  would 
guarantee  to  give  me  and  every  member  of  my  family  a  $100  funeral.  He 
added:  "I  know,  Mr.  Stokes,  that  this  is  not  a  financial  necessity  for  you, 
but  the  fact  of  the  matter  is  that  if  we  can  bury  you  and  a  few  other  people 
of  local  prominence  we  will  gain  much  prestige!" 

Your  Chairman,  in  writing  to  me  and  the  other  speakers,  courteously 
suggested  a  ten  minute  limit.  I  had  not  supposed  before  that  the  South 
cared  anything  about  time.  But  you  are  even  stricter  in  your  requirements 
than  we  in  the  College  Chapel  at  Yale,  where  President  Hadley  is  reported 
to  have  answered  a  preacher's  inquiries  by  saying,  "We  have  no  time  limit 
at  Yale,  but  few  souls  are  saved  after  twenty  minutes!"  What,  only  ten 
minutes  to  pay  my  respects  to  Thomas  Jefferson,  to  President  Alderman,  to 


ii6         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Charlottesville,  the  State  of  Virginia,  the  South  and  this  great  University, 
and  in  addition  to  say  something  about  University  ideals !  It  seems  like  a 
sheer  impossibility,  but  I  will  do  my  best. 

First,  as  to  Thomas  Jefferson.  No  man  can  speak  here  without  paying 
his  tribute  to  the  sage  of  Monticello.  Although  a  Northerner  and  a  New 
England  man,  I  was  brought  up  by  my  father  to  have  great  respect  for  the 
political  teachings  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  and  I  do  not  regret  this.  I  am 
proud  that  my  University  was  among  the  first  in  this  country  to  honor  him 
by  giving  him  in  1 786  the  degree  of  LL.D.  I  remember  that  when  Jefferson 
visited  New  Haven  two  years  previously  and  was  introduced  by  Roger 
Sherman  to  Ezra  Stiles,  the  latter,  then  President  of  Yale  University,  put 
in  his  diary :  ' '  The  Governor  is  a  most  ingenious  Naturalist  and  Philosopher 
— a  truly  scientific  and  learned  man — in  every  way  excellent ' ' — an  admirable 
tribute  to  which  most  of  us  are  glad  to  give  assent.  I  know  of  no  place  in 
America  which  is  so  dominated  by  the  personality  of  one  man  as  this  place 
has  been  by  that  of  Thomas  Jefferson.  One  has  to  go  to  Europe  for  its  coun- 
terpart. At  Eisenach  you  breathe  the  spirit  of  Martin  Luther.  At  Assisi 
you  feel  the  very  presence  of  St.  Francis.  So  is  it  here  with  the  "father  of 
the  University."  The  beautiful  pageant  yesterday  evening  showed  "the 
shadow  of  the  founder."  May  it  never  grow  less,  but  may  it  stand  for  all 
time  as  a  pillar  of  cloud  by  day  and  a  pillar  of  fire  by  night  to  hold  this  in- 
stitution, this  Commonwealth  and  this  Nation  up  to  the  high  educational 
and  political  ideals  for  which  he  stood. 

And  now  as  to  President  Alderman.  I  often  wondered  why  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia  went  for  eighty  years  without  a  President.  I  realize  now 
that  it  was  largely  because  it  took  this  length  of  time  before  the  spirit  of 
Jefferson  was  reincarnated  in  someone  who  could  carry  out  his  educational 
ideals  here.  As  a  political  philosopher,  as  an  eloquent  speaker,  as  a  man  of 
broad  culture  and  of  high  conceptions  of  a  University,  President  Alderman 
may  in  many  ways  be  considered  the  living  representative  of  the  founder,  the 
one  on  whom  the  mantle  of  Elijah  has  fallen.  We  have  had  at  my  Uni- 
versity during  the  past  twenty  years  many  of  the  most  distinguished 
speakers  from  America  and  abroad.  Theodore  Roosevelt  gave  his  first 
public  address  as  President  of  the  United  States  at  Yale's  Bicentennial. 
Woodrow  Wilson  delivered  at  Yale  his  great  address  on  Scholarship,  before 
the  Phi  Beta  Kappa.  Many  other  orators  have  made  a  profound  impression 
upon  Yale  audiences,  but  no  one  has  made  a  speech  which  created  a  more 
profound  impression  than  that  delivered  by  President  Alderman  at  a  Yale 
commencement  a  decade  ago  when  we  gave  him  our  highest  honor,  the 
Doctor  of  Laws  degree.  As  a  colleague  of  your  President's  for  many  years 
on  the  General  Education  Board  I  have  gained  a  deep  respect  and  affection 
for  him.    I  know  of  no  one  in  this  country  who  interprets  all  that  is  best  in 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         117 

the  South  to  the  North,  and  all  that  is  best  in  the  North  to  the  South  with 
more  unfailing  insight  and  a  better  spirit  than  he,  and  it  would  be  hard  to 
render  a  larger  public  service  than  this  to  the  nation. 

And  now  as  to  the  University.  There  are  many  reasons  why  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia  should  make  a  profound  appeal  to  all  thoughtful  Ameri- 
cans.   I  have  time  to  mention  but  four. 

It  stands  for  beauty.  There  is  no  academic  group  in  America  of  more 
simple  charm  and  dignity  than  that  which  Jefferson  designed  about  the 
Lawn  here.  Virginia  is  the  only  American  university  that  has  passed  through 
the  Victorian  period  without  being  saddled  with  some  architectural  mon- 
strosity. I  hear  some  of  you  complain  of  your  Geology  Museum,  but  it 
would  pass  among  the  best  buildings  at  some  of  our  educational  institutions ! 
I  can  only  hope  that  you  will  continue  your  policy  of  developing  a  consistent 
architectural  plan  in  one  style.  If  a  donor  should  come  along  and  offer  you 
a  million  dollars  for  some  much-needed  building  with  the  understanding 
that  he  could  choose  his  architect  without  reference  to  the  University's 
plan,  I  hope  that  the  Board  of  Visitors  may  have  the  courage  to  decline  the 
offer.  You  have  escaped  all  "early  North  German  Lloyd"  and  "late 
Hamburg- American "  here,  and  you  must  maintain  your  precious 
heritage ! 

It  stands  for  breadth.  Here  was  developed  under  Jefferson's  guidance 
the  first  real  university  ideal  in  America,  for  Jefferson's  system  included 
medicine,  and  law,  and  the  fine  arts,  and  statesmanship,  and  engineering, 
and  mental  and  natural  philosophy,  and  almost  all  the  other  departments 
which  universities  have  developed  in  the  past  half  century.  He  had  a  broad 
plan,  and  he  showed  his  breadth  by  instituting  here  at  an  early  day  what  was 
virtually  the  elective  system  in  the  different  schools  of  study.  This  breadth 
has  been  well  maintained,  and  it  is  seen  to-day  not  only  in  the  curriculum, 
but  in  the  fact  that  students  come  here  not  only  from  the  Commonwealth 
of  Virginia,  but  from  all  the  States  of  the  South,  from  many  States  of  the 
North,  and  from  foreign  countries. 

It  stands  for  idealism.  The  incident  of  the  carved  marble  column 
about  which  so  much  was  made  last  evening  has  its  profound  significance. 
Jefferson  and  his  successors  have  had  high  ideals.  The  starting  here  of  the 
honor  system,  which  has  meant  so  much  to  American  universities,  was  a 
good  example  of  this.  So  is  your  Chapel,  a  building,  I  regret  to  say,  not 
always  found  in  state  universities;  so  is  the  record  of  your  great  scholars 
Gildersleeve,  Sylvester,  Moore  and  many  others. 

It  stands  for  public  service.  Founded  by  one  President  of  the  United 
States,  guided  by  two  others,  it  has  nurtured  a  fourth,  and  has  trained  at 
least  as  large  a  proportion  of  men  for  the  highest  public  service  of  the  nation 
as  any  American  university. 


ii8         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

And  now  as  to  the  future.  A  university  like  the  University  of  Virginia 
has  many  functions.  In  its  College  it  will  train  men  as  leaders  in  citizenship ; 
in  its  professional  departments  it  will  continue  to  give  men  the  highest  prep- 
aration as  lawyers,  doctors,  engineers,  teachers;  in  its  Graduate  School  it 
will  extend  the  boundaries  of  the  world's  knowledge,  and,  perhaps  most 
important  of  all,  as  a  University  it  will  hand  down  through  all  its  schools 
and  departments  the  culttu'e  and  traditions  of  the  past.  This  last  is  a  matter 
of  vital  importance  in  our  changing  democracy.  All  is  in  flux.  We  have  not 
in  this  country  many  of  the  institutions  such  as  an  estabHshed  church,  or  a 
royal  family,  or  great  buildings  like  Westminster  Abbey  bearing  memorials 
of  many  centuries,  which  hand  down  and  focus  attention  on  national  tradi- 
tions. For  some  of  these  lacks  we  are  thankful.  For  others  we  express 
regret ;  but  the  fact  remains  that  there  are  few  American  institutions  which 
sum  up  so  much  history  and  are  so  well  fitted  to  transmit  the  heritage  of  the 
past  to  future  generations  as  our  historic  universities.  For  these  reasons  I 
say  with  you  most  heartily  to-night  "Diu  floreat  Alma  Mater  Virginiensis." 


RESPONSE  OF  PRESIDENT  HARRY  WOODBURN  CHASE,  PH.D.,  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  NORTH   CAROLINA 

The  ties  of  friendship  and  affection  which  link  the  University  of  Vir- 
ginia with  the  institution  that  I  am  privileged  to  represent  to-night  are  so 
close,  so  intimate,  that  no  formal  words  of  congratulation  on  my  part  could 
possibly  convey  the  warmth  and  heartiness  of  the  greetings  which  I  bring 
you  from  the  University  of  North  Carolina.  Both  of  us  are  children  of  that 
far-visioned  Southern  statesmanship  which  so  soon  saw  that  democracy 
must  make  public  provision  for  the  training  of  its  leaders ;  we  have  known 
common  sorrow  and  mutual  joy;  we  have  learned  each  other's  temper  at 
work  and  at  play;  we  claim,  equally  with  you,  him  who  at  this  hour  presides 
over  your  destinies — our  own  alumnus,  teacher,  and  president,  whose  Alma 
Mater  greets  him  and  rejoices  with  him  at  this  birthday  feast. 

On  an  occasion  such  as  this,  one  is  torn  inevitably  between  the  mood 
of  the  historian  and  the  mood  of  the  prophet.  A  milestone  has  been  reached 
in  the  history  of  a  great  public,  a  great  national,  institution.  It  marks  the 
completion  of  a  century  of  distinguished  achievement ;  a  century  spent  in  the 
growing  of  men  whose  careers  are  a  more  lasting  memorial  than  bronze  to  the 
magnitude  of  the  service  of  this  University.  But  it  is,  I  know,  your  temper, 
as  it  is  the  temper  of  America,  to  conceive  of  anniversaries  not  merely  as 
memorials,  but  as  points  of  departure.  The  mind  kindles  not  only  with  the 
memory  of  that  rich  and  glorious  past  which  is  yours,  but  in  no  less  measure 
with  the  vision  of  the  splendid  promise  which  lies  ahead. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  119 

Thus  it  seems  to  me  of  happy  significance  that  we  should  celebrate  with 
you  your  centennial,  with  all  its  joy  in  work  well  done,  at  the  moment  when 
you  and  your  sister  universities  of  the  South  are  called  to  the  performance  of 
a  task,  certainly  of  greater  magnitude,  perhaps  of  greater  difficulty,  than 
any  that  lies  behind.  For  it  is  very  clear  that  the  South  is  even  now  be- 
ginning the  writing  of  a  great  new  chapter  in  her  history,  whose  theme  is  to 
be  the  final  and  full  release  of  her  splendid  material  and  human  resources. 
There  is  no  braver  story  in  history  than  the  story  of  the  last  half -century  in 
the  South ;  the  story  of  her  struggle  for  reestablishment  and  for  liberation 
from  poverty  and  from  ignorance,  which  was  its  sequel.  I  cannot  think  it 
without  significance  that  the  men  who  had  the  courage  and  the  vision  to 
make  that  fight  have  been  men  of  the  stock  and  the  blood  that  made 
America,  children,  almost  without  exception,  of  the  colonists,  the  pioneer, 
the  builders  of  our  country,  they  are  making  a  new  civilization  where 
their  fathers  made  a  new  nation. 

Such  is  the  blood  which  flows  in  the  veins  of  the  youth  of  the  Southland. 
Who  can  fail  to  see  what  promise  their  liberation  holds  for  the  South  and 
for  America ! 

This  is  the  South 's  appointed  hour.  Out  of  the  hearts  and  minds  of  her 
sons  then  shall  surely  proceed — is  even  now  proceeding — a  new,  a  greater 
and  a  higher  order.  Thus  the  task  of  the  Southern  university  of  our  genera- 
tion must  be,  in  the  full  sense  of  the  word,  constructive.  Men  must  be 
trained  for  full  participation  in  the  difficult  and  complex  responsibilities  of  a 
swiftly  developing  new  civilization,  fitted  to  live  happy  and  productive  lives 
in  an  environment  that  shifts  and  alters  even  as  we  view  it.  And  it  is,  I 
think,  no  less  the  task  of  the  universities  of  the  South  to  guide,  to  focus,  to 
interpret  to  themselves  and  to  the  world  this  great  forward,  upward  move- 
ment of  democracy,  to  do  their  utmost  to  see  to  it  that  it  becomes,  not 
merely  a  great  national  expansion,  but  a  steady  enrichment  of  life  in  all  its 
higher  reaches. 

The  task  of  the  Southern  State  universities  is  then  to-day  in  a  very  real 
sense  a  pioneering  task,  as  in  the  days  of  their  foundation.  Their  journey  is 
again  by  unknown,  untried  ways. 

To  you.  University  of  Virginia,  born  of  the  spirit  of  the  pioneer,  to  you 
who  played  so  bravely  your  part  in  the  making  of  your  State  and  your 
country,  beloved  by  us  all,  hallowed  by  memories  that  cluster  about  you — 
to  you  we  bid  Godspeed  as  your  second  century  begins,  in  confident  assur- 
ance that  your  contribution  to  the  future  South  will  be  as  free,  as  splendid, 
as  enduring,  as  has  been  the  service  of  the  century  you  have  passed.  The 
new  South,  the  new  day,  is  here.  May  you  go  forward,  under  skies  that 
brighten  more  and  more,  with  steps  that  falter  not,  and  a  vision  that  never 
shall  grow  dim. 


120         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

response  by  the  honorable  thomas  watt  gregory,  former  attorney- 
general  of  the  united  states 

Mr.  Toastmaster  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  : 

The  experience  of  the  ages  has  demonstrated  that  liars  are  divided  into 
three  ascending  grades — the  Har,  the  damn  Har,  and  the  old  Alumnus.  It 
is  astonishing  how,  on  an  occasion  like  this,  the  fossil  representative  of  a 
former  generation  of  students  magnifies  and  manufactures  the  Homeric 
deeds  of  his  youth.  He  likes  to  think  that  in  the  old  days  he  was  a  distinct 
menace  to  society,  that  the  faculty  quailed  when  he  went  on  the  rampage, 
and  that  the  police  of  Charlottesville  took  to  the  Ragged  Mountains  when 
his  voice  was  heard  in  the  land.  He  may  have  been  the  mildest  sheep  in  the 
entire  flock,  but  he  will  bow  his  back  and  purr  like  a  cat  on  hearing  his  son 
whisper  that  "Dad  was  a  devil  in  his  day."  Few  people  believe  these 
stories  of  the  old  timer  any  more  than  the  story-teller  himself  believes  them. 

I  claim  no  monopoly  of  veracity,  but  it  does  no  harm  to  tell  the  truth 
occasionally,  and  besides  it  sometimes  pays.  I  recall  a  citizen  of  my  native 
State  of  Mississippi  who  was  elected  to  Congress  and  remained  there  twenty 
years,  largely  because  he  openly  proclaimed  that  he  had  been  a  private 
soldier  in  the  Confederate  Army.  The  great  body  of  privates,  who  were 
masquerading  as  captains,  and  majors,  and  colonels,  voted  for  this  man 
because  they  had  a  sneaking  admiration  for  his  honesty  and  were  unwilling 
to  see  his  grade  become  extinct.  He  developed  into  a  national  character 
known  as  "John  Allen,  the  only  surviving  private  soldier  of  the  Confeder- 
acy." 

With  deep  humiliation  I  confess  that  when  I  attended  the  University  of 
Virginia  during  seven  months  of  the  collegiate  years  of  1883-4  I  was  "a 
grind."  I  trust  that  this  candid  confession  will  be  remembered  in  my  favor 
at  the  judgment  day,  if  not  sooner.  I  did  not  belong  to  the  German  Club 
or  the  Eli  Bananas ;  I  did  not  take  calico  even  in  homeopathic  doses ;  I  did 
not  have  more  than  two  pairs  of  pants  at  any  time,  and  only  one  pair  during 
much  of  the  time.  For  me  it  was  a  period  of  grinding  labor,  with  few 
friendships,  interspersed  with  little  of  lighter  vein.  I  was  a  part  of  the 
wreckage  of  a  stricken  South.  I  was  born  just  after  the  first  battle  of  Ma- 
nassas. My  father  died  in  the  Confederate  Army.  A  widowed  mother,  with 
painful  toil,  accumulated  the  small  fund  which  enabled  me  to  enjoy  for  a 
few  months  the  best  instruction  the  South  afforded.  I  came  to  sit  at  the 
feet  of  John  B.  Minor  and  Stephen  O.  Southall,  to  breathe  an  atmosphere 
sanctified  by  Monticello  and  the  grave  of  its  builder,  to  gather  inspiration 
from  the  best  that  was  left  of  the  old  South  by  contact  with  its  loftiest  minds. 
Almost  forty  years  have  passed  and  "the  old  grind"  comes  back,  and  will 
tell  you  why  he  comes  back. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         121 

Those  were  the  most  valuable  seven  months  of  my  life,  and  looking 
backward  I  can  clearly  see  what  made  them  so. 

Loyalty  is  the  finest  word  in  any  language ;  as  long  as  you  have  it  you 
will  be  young  in  heart  and  worth  associating  with,  and  when  you  lose  it 
your  years  will  be  of  little  value  to  anyone,  least  of  all  to  yourself.  I  have  the 
most  profound  sympathy  for  former  students  of  this  Institution  who  are 
absent  on  this  occasion  without  good  excuse.  They  remind  me  of  the  un- 
happy Scotchman  who  said  he  found  no  more  pleasure  in  smoking,  that 
when  he  was  smoking  his  own  tobacco  he  was  thinking  of  how  much  it  cost 
him,  and  when  he  was  smoking  the  other  fellow's  tobacco  he  packed  his  pipe 
so  tight  it  wouldn't  draw.  In  contemplating  the  indifference  of  those  who 
show  no  appreciation  of  past  associations  and  the  high  ideals  which  bring 
us  here  I  recall  the  words  of  Stevenson  when  he  heard  of  the  death 
of  Matthew  Arnold:  "I  am  sorry  for  poor  Arnold,  he  will  not  like  God." 

Like  most  of  you,  I  have  long  since  forgotten  most  of  what  I  learned  in 
the  classroom  of  "The  Old  Annex, "  though  God  knows  John  B.  tried  hard 
enough  to  teach  me  the  distinction  between  an  executory  devise  and  a 
contingent  remainder.  I  have  never  been  an  enthusiastic  admirer  of  the 
mere  scholar,  and  recall  with  malignant  pleasure  that  John  Randolph  of 
Roanoke  once  said  of  a  very  erudite  opponent  that  "the  gentleman  re- 
minded him  of  the  soil  of  Virginia, — poor  by  nature  and  worn  out  by  culti- 
vation," 

What  then  is  the  tie  that  binds?  What  is  the  mark  set  upon  the  brow 
of  the  student  of  that  long  past  day?  What  did  he  take  away  from  here 
which  he  has  not  forgotten  ?  It  was  the  teachings  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  and 
the  personal  example  of  the  men  who  constituted  the  Faculty  of  the  Uni- 
versity during  the  years  immediately  following  the  Civil  War. 

In  those  days  the  spirit  and  influence  of  Jefferson  brooded  over  this 
Institution  like  the  wings  of  a  mother  bird.  If  asked  to  state  his  doctrine  in 
few  words  I  would  say  it  was  the  principle  of  individual  liberty  and  a  cor- 
responding individual  responsibility.  He  was  not  so  much  interested  in 
protecting  the  rights  of  the  States  against  the  powers  of  the  National  Gov- 
ernment, as  he  was  in  protecting  the  rights  of  the  individual  against  the 
encroachments  of  all  authority.  Out  of  this  fundamental  belief  of  Jefferson 
grew,  among  other  things,  your  original  faculty  organization,  your  honor 
system  which  has  spread  over  all  the  land,  the  right  of  the  student  to  select 
his  courses,  the  freedom  of  the  student  from  restraint  outside  of  the  class- 
room, and  the  trial  by  an  organized  student  body  of  all  infractions  of  a  high 
code  of  personal  integrity.  Well  might  he  dictate  for  an  inscription  upon  his 
marble  sentinel — not  that  he  was  Minister  to  France,  not  that  he  was 
Secretary  of  State,  not  that  he  was  Governor  of  Virginia,  not  that  he  was 
Vice-President  of  the  United  States,  not  that  he  was  President  of  the  United 


122  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

States — but  that  he  was  the ' '  Father  of  the  University  of  Virginia. ' '  And  as 
long  as  the  old  Arcades,  planned  by  the  Master's  hand,  shall  stand,  as  long 
as  her  sons  shall  bear  her  honored  name  to  every  section  of  this  Republic, 
so  long  shall  the  University  of  Virginia  be  counted  no  unworthy  monument 
to  her  mighty  founder. 

To  the  memory  of  the  Faculty  of  that  day  I  bow  in  humble  reverence. 
They  were  a  Spartan  band,  but  old  age  had  crept  upon  them.  They  had 
toiled  for  a  third  of  a  century  in  making  the  University  of  Virginia  the 
Mecca  of  learning  for  all  the  South,  and  had  established  here  a  standard  of 
scholarship  probably  unequaled  on  this  continent.  They  had  lived  through 
war  and  defeat.  Finally  the  tempest  of  reconstruction  had  swept  over  them, 
carrying  away  for  the  moment  every  landmark  of  social  status  and  political 
faith,  and  leaving  these  men  standing,  with  folded  arms  and  undaunted 
courage,  amid  the  flotsam  and  jetsam  of  creeds  which  were  knit  into  every 
fiber  of  their  beings  and  ancestral  traditions  which  had  become  a  part  of  their 
daily  lives.  Their  attitude  carried  no  craven  apology  for  the  past  and  no 
unseemly  defiance  of  the  future. 

Speaking  of  this  typical  Southern  leader  of  that  day,  Daniel  H.  Cham- 
berlain, the  reconstruction  ruler  of  South  Carolina,  said: 

"I  consider  him  a  distinct  and  really  noble  growth  of  our  American  soil. 
For,  if  fortitude  under  good  and  under  evil  fortune,  if  endurance  without 
complaint  of  what  comes  in  the  tide  of  human  affairs,  if  a  grim  clinging  to 
ideals  once  charming,  if  vigor  and  resiliency  of  character  and  spirit  under 
defeat  and  poverty  and  distress,  if  a  steady  love  of  learning  and  letters  when 
libraries  were  lost  in  flames  and  the  wreckage  of  war,  if  self-restraint  when 
the  long-delayed  relief  at  last  came;  if,  I  say,  all  these  qualities  are  parts  of 
real  heroism,  if  these  qualities  can  vivify  and  ennoble  a  man  or  a  people, 
then  our  own  South  may  lay  claim  to  an  honored  place  among  the  differing 
types  of  our  great  common  race." 

Such  was  the  matured  judgment  of  the  Massachusetts  Governor  of 
South  Carolina  during  the  reconstruction  period  in  regard  to  men  of  this 
type,  and  there  is  nothing  I  would  wish  to  add  to  it  except  this — that  when 
we  of  the  South  forget  the  precept  and  example  of  these  men,  when  we  forget 
that  from  them  there  has  come  down  to  us  a  heritage  of  loyalty,  of  manhood 
and  of  courage  such  as  the  world  has  seldom  known,  when  we  forget  these 
things  then  God,  in  His  infinite  justice,  should  forget  us. 

The  "old  grind"  has  not  forgotten.  He  is  here  to-night  to  renew  his 
allegiance  to  these  men  and  what  they  stood  for,  and  to  reconsecrate  himself 
to  the  faith  that  was  theirs. 


THE  FOURTH  DAY 

On  the  final  day  of  the  Centennial  were  held  the  regular  com- 
mencement exercises  of  1921,  with  a  formal  address  by  the  President 
of  the  University ;  the  meetings  of  the  Alumni  in  departmental  groups 
for  technical  discussion ;  the  annual  Class- Day  celebration ;  the  Alumni 
Barbecue,  with  the  officials  of  the  University,  the  delegates  and  other 
guests  and  their  families,  in  attendance;  and  the  closing  Torchlight 
Parade  and  Fireworks  on  the  Lawn. 

Immediately  following  the  Commencement  invocation  and  just 
before  the  conferring  of  degrees,  the  decoration  of  the  Distinguished 
Service  Cross  of  Serbia  was  presented  to  President  Alderman  by  Mrs. 
Rosalie  Slaughter  Morton,  M.D.,  of  the  International  Serbian  Educa- 
tional Committee,  representing  the  Government  of  Serbia,  in  the 
following  address: 

Mr.  President,  Members  of  the  Faculty,  Delegates,  Student-Body 
AND  Guests  of  the  University  of  Virginia  : 
It  is  with  a  great  deal  of  pleasure  that  I  have  come  this  morning  to 
present  to  the  President  of  the  University  of  Virginia  the  Distinguished 
Service  Cross  of  Serbia.  In  the  tenth  century  there  was  a  king's  son  whose 
name  was  Sava,  and  who  said  that  he  thought  no  man  had  the  right  to 
precedent  which  came  through  the  accident  of  birth,  and  he  therefore  de- 
clared his  intention  not  to  succeed  his  father  on  the  throne  but  to  devote 
himself  instead  to  a  scholastic  life.  As  the  only  schools  of  learning  at  that 
period  were  monasteries,  he  entered  one  and  by  the  time  his  father,  who  lived 
to  a  good  old  age,  was  approaching  the  end  of  his  life  Sava  had  become 
through  his  industry  and  admirable  character  the  chief  of  the  order  and  his 
influence,  directly  and  through  the  lives  of  those  he  helped  to  train,  was  far 
reaching  for  mental,  moral  and  spiritual  good.  When  the  courtiers  from  the 
Palace  came  officially  to  tell  him  that  it  was  his  duty  to  study  international 
relations  and  government  policies  with  a  view  of  fitting  himself  to  rule  the 
kingdom,  he  replied  that  it  was  more  important  for  him  to  keep  his  word  than 
to  be  king,  and  he  refused  to  listen  to  their  arguments  and  entreaties ;  so  the 

123 


124         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

succession  passed  to  his  brother.  In  many  countries  this  man  would  have 
been  regarded  as  a  fanatic.  In  Serbia,  where  the  spiritual  has  always  out- 
weighed the  material,  he  was  canonized  and  the  maxim  of  St.  Sava  "by  the 
excellence  of  your  work  you  shall  accomplish  all  things"  became  a  precept 
for  the  guidance  of  youth. 

In  1883  when  it  became  general  for  governments  to  recognize  services 
through  decorations,  the  cross  of  St.  Sava  was  established  as  the  Distin- 
guished Service  Order  of  Serbia,  and  on  this  occasion  when  the  sons  and 
daughters  of  this  University  are  graduating  to  go  forth  into  the  world  ful- 
filling the  democratic  precepts  of  St.  Sava,  the  occasion  is  most  fitting  for 
presenting  to  the  distinguished  President  of  the  University  of  Virginia  this 
cross  which  is  bestowed  by  the  Serbian  government  in  recognition  of  the 
intellectual  comradeship  shown  by  the  universities  and  colleges  in  this  State, 
in  extending  invitations  to  students  who  were  qualified  to  enter  the  Univer- 
sity of  Belgrade,  an  opportunity  to  pursue  their  studies  here ;  and  also  in 
appreciation  of  the  hospital  supplies  presented  to  Serbia  by  Virginians. 
There  are  among  the  organizations  represented  at  this  Centennial  twenty 
who  have  cooperated  with  the  International  Serbian  Educational  Commit- 
tee; i.  e.,  the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  Princeton  University,  University 
of  the  State  of  New  York,  State  College  of  North  Carolina,  Bowdoin  College, 
University  of  Maryland,  Randolph-Macon  College,  Mount  Holyoke  Col- 
lege, Tufts  College,  Vassar  College,  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology, 
Cornell  University,  Worcester  Polytechnic  Institute,  West  Virginia  Uni- 
versity, Bureau  of  Education,  University  of  California,  Syracuse  University, 
Sweet  Briar  College,  Columbia  University,  and  American  Council  on  Educa- 
tion ;  and  the  cities  where  many  men  and  women  earnestly  worked  and  from 
which  were  sent  hospital  equipment  and  supplies  to  lessen  suffering  and  save 
life  in  Serbia  are  Charlottesville,  Richmond,  Petersburg,  Norfolk,  Lynch- 
burg, Danville,  and  Staunton.  Therefore,  Mr.  President,  with  great  appre- 
ciation of  the  world  spirit  of  Virginia,  the  Government  of  Serbia  authorized 
the  presentation  of  this  medal  which  I  am  privileged  to  ask  you  to  accept, 
symbolizing  as  it  does  a  love  of  learning  in  Serbia  which  has  come  down 
through  a  thousand  years,  as  a  tribute  on  this  Centennial  occasion  of  the 
University  from  which  so  many  with  high  purpose,  wide  vision,  great  faith 
and  successful  accomplishment  have  gone  forth. 

THE  RESPONSE  OF  PRESIDENT  ALDERMAN 

I  am  deeply  grateful  to  His  Majesty,  the  King  of  Serbia,  for  this  valued 
decoration,  and  to  you  a  veteran  in  the  service  of  the  Serbian  people,  for 
your  gracious  presentation.  I  shall  cherish  it  always  as  a  souvenir  of  a 
gallant  people  who  knew  how  to  win  their  liberties  by  the  exercise  of  unex- 
ampled valor  and  devotion. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         125 

Friday,  June  jd 

11.00  A.M.  Final  Exercises,  Conferring  of  Degrees,  and  Address  by 
the  President.    The  Amphitheatre 

The  Order  of  the  Procession,  Friday  Morning 

BAND 

I 

THE  CLASS  OF    1 92 1    IN  DIVISIONS   BY  DEPARTMENTS 

II 

THE  ALUMNI  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  IN   REVERSE  ORDER  OF 

CLASS  SENIORITY 

III 
THE  PROFESSORS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  IN  REVERSE  ORDER 
OF   OFFICIAL   SENIORITY 
FORMER  PROFESSORS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY 

IV 

THE  ALUMNI   TRUSTEES   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY   OF  VIRGINIA 

ENDOWMENT   FUND 

THE  TRUSTEES  OF  THE  MILLER  FUND 

THE  VISITORS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 

FORMER  VISITORS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 

FORMER  RECTORS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY 

V 
GUESTS   OF   THE    UNIVERSITY 

VI 
DELEGATES    FROM    INSTITUTIONS    IN    FOREIGN    COUNTRIES 
DELEGATES    FROM    INSTITUTIONS    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES 

VII 

THE    REVEREND   GEORGE   LAURENS   PETRIE 

THE   RECTOR   OF   THE   UNIVERSITY 

THE   governor's    MILITARY   STAFF 

THE  GOVERNOR  OF  THE  COMMONWEALTH  OF  VIRGINIA 

THE    PRESIDENT   OF   THE    UNIVERSITY 


126         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

The  Order  of  Exercises:  The  Amphitheatre 

Invocation:  The  Reverend  George 

Laurens    Petrie, 
A.M.,  D.D. 

Conferring  of  Professional 
Degrees 

Conferring  of  Academic  De- 
grees 

The  Address:  The  President  of  the 

University   of   Vir- 
ginia 

Recession 

3.00  P.M.  Meetings  of  Alumni  in  Departmental  Groups 
Meeting  of  Clerical  Alumni.     University  Chapel 
Topic:  Religious  Culture  in  State  Universities  by  Denomi- 
national Agencies 
Presiding  Officer,  The  Reverend  William  Mentzel 

Forrest,  B.A. 
The  Reverend  Beverley  Dandridge  Tucker,  Jr.,  '02, 

B.D.,  M.A.,  of  the  Episcopal  Church 
The  Reverend  Samuel  Chiles  Mitchell,  '92,  Ph.D., 

LL.D.,  of  the  Baptist  Church 
The  Reverend  Thomas  Cary  Johnson,  '84,  A.B.,  D.D., 

LL.D.,  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
The  Reverend  Byrdine  Akers  Abbott,  '90,  of  the 

Church  of  the  Disciples  of  Christ 
The  Reverend  John  Samuel  Flory,  '07,  Ph.D.,  of  the 

Dunkard  Church 
Rabbi  Edward  Nathaniel  Calisch,  '08,  Ph.D.,  of  the 
Jewish  Church 

Meeting  of  the  Alumni  of  the  Law    Department. 
Minor  Hall 
Presiding  Officer,   Dean  William  Minor  Lile,   '^2, 

LL.B.,  LL.D. 
The  Policies  of  the  Law  School,  Past,  Present,  and  Future. 
Dean  Lile 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  127 

The  Plan  and  History  of  the    Virginia  Law  Review. 

Randolph  Caskie  Coleman,  '21,  M.A.,  Editor 
Organization  of  Law  Alumni  Association 

Its   Advantages    and    Opportunities.     Alexander 
Pope  Humphrey,  '68,  LL.B. 

Submission  of  Proposed  Constitution 

Enrollment  of  Charter  Members 

Election  of  Officers 
Presentation  of  Souvenirs 

Meeting  of  the  Medical  Alumni  Association.  Madi- 
son Hall 

President,  Hugh  Hampton  Young,  '94,  A.M.,  M.D. 

Election  of  Officers 

Movements  in  Medical  Education.  William  Holland 
WiLMER,  '85,  M.D.,  LL.D. 

Opening  Discussion,  David  Russell  Lyman,  '99,  M.A., 
M.D. 

Meeting  of  the  Engineering  Alumni.     Mechanical 

Laboratory 
Topic:  Organization  of  an  Engineering  Alumni  Council 

Presiding  Officer,  Dean  William  Mynn  Thornton,  '73, 
A.B.,  LL.D. 

Opening  Discussion,  Allen  Jeter  Saville,  '08,  M.E. 

Discussion  from  the  Point  of  View  of  a  Civil  Engineer, 
Walter  Jones  Laird,  '09,  C.E. 

Discussion  from  the  Point  of  View  of  a  Mechanical 
Engineer.  William  Carrington  Lancaster,  '03, 
M.E.,  E.E. 

Discussion  from  the  Point  of  View  of  an  Electrical  En- 
gineer.   Matthew  Orpheus  Troy,  '96,  B.S. 

Discussion  from  the  Point  of  View  of  a  Chemical  En- 
gineer.   John  Marshall,  '13,  Chem.E. 

Meeting  of  the  Collegiate  Alumni  by  Sections. 

Peahody  Hall 
General  Group  Meeting 
Presiding  Officer,  Dean  James  Morris  Page,  Ph.D., 
LL.D. 


128         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

An  Historical  Sketch  of  the  Academic  Department  of  the 
University.  William  Harrison  Faulkner,  '02, 
Ph.D.,  Professor  of  Germanic  Languages,  University 
of  Virginia 

I.    LANGUAGE   AND  LITERATURE  GROUP 

Presiding  Officer,  William  Harrison  Faulkner,  '02, 
Ph.D. 

The  Present  Crisis  in  the  Modern  Languages.  Robert 
Herndon  Fife,  '95,  Ph.D.,  Gebhard  Professor  of  Ger- 
manic Languages  and  Literature,  Columbia  University 

The  Demand  for  Teachers  of  French  and  Spanish.  Henry 
Carrington  Lancaster,  '03,  Ph.D.,  Professor  of 
French  Literature,  The  Johns  Hopkins  University 

Educational  Problems  in  University  Instruction  of  English^ 
Morris  Palmer  Tilley,  '99,  Ph.D.,  Professor  of 
English,  University  of  Michigan 

II.  mathematical    and   natural    science   group 

Presiding  Officer,  Robert  Montgomery  Bird,  Ph.D. 
Problems  in  Scientific  Education,  Charles  Lee  Reese, 

'84,  Ph.D.,  Sc.D.,  Chemical  Director  of  E.  L  du  Pont 

de  Nemours  and  Company 
A  Plea  for  the  Perfect,  William  Jackson  Humphreys,  '89, 

Ph.D.,   Professor  of  Meteorological    Physics,   United 

States  Weather  Bureau 

III.  educational  group 

Presiding  Officer,  Dean  John  Levi  Man  ah  an,  Ph.D. 

The  Contribution  of  the  University  of  Virginia  to  Education 
through  Private  Academies,  John  Carter  Walker,  '97, 
M.A.,  Headmaster  of  Woodberry  Forest  School 

The  Contribution  of  the  University  of  Virginia  to  the  Public 
School  System  of  the  State,  John  Walter  Wayland,  '07, 
Ph.D.,  Professor  of  History,  Harrisonburg  State  Nor- 
mal School 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         129 

What  the  Public  School  System  of  Virginia  has  a  Right  to 
Expect  from  the  University,  Harris  Hart,  A.B.,  Super- 
intendent of  Public  Instruction  of  Virginia 


4.30  P.M.  Exercises  by  the  Class  of  1 92 1.     The  Amphitheatre.    Pre- 
siding Officer,  Edward  Percy  Russell,  President 

Overture: 

The  Poem,  1921:  Charles  Edgar  Gilliam 

Address  in  Presentation     Thomas  Johnson  Michie, 

OF  Class  Gift:  Jr. 

Address  of  Acceptance  :       The    President    of    the 

University 
Song:  The  Class  of  192 i 

Farewell:  The    President    of    the 

Class 

5.00  p.m.   Band  Concert.    The  Lawn 

6.00  P.M.    Alumni  Barbecue:  Officials  of  the  University,  Delegates, 
other  Guests,  and  their  families  are  invited.    Barbecue 
Grounds 
9.00  P.M.    Torchlight  Parade,  with  Review.    The  Lawn 

Procession  from  Barbecue  Grotmds  to  the  Lawn  by  the 

Classes  in  Order  of  Seniority 
Fireworks,  and  Parade  to  the  Rotunda 
Review  by  Officials  and  Delegates.    The  Lawn 


ADDRESSES  ON  THE  FOURTH  DAY 

invocation   by  the  reverend  GEORGE  LAURENS  PETRIE,   D.D.,   OF  CHAR- 
LOTTESVILLE,   VA. 

O  God  of  Truth  and  Grace ;  the  Truth  through  which  freedom  comes, 
the  Grace  to  which  alone  and  ever  we  must  look  for  help. 

The  years  that  are  past  are  rendered  illustrious  by  Thy  mercies.  The 
paths  we  have  trodden  have  opened  to  our  advancing  steps,  and  have  given 
new  visions  of  Thy  greatness  and  Thy  glory,  new  experiences  of  Thy  wisdom 
and  Thy  love.  As  we  look  back  through  the  vista  of  the  past  we  are  grateful 
for  Thy  mercies.  As  we  look  forward  to  the  coming  years  we  are  cheered  by 
hope. 


130         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

We  thank  Thee  for  the  prevision  which  planned  this  great  Institution ; 
for  the  wisdom  which  laid  its  foundations;  for  the  skill  which  reared  its 
walls;  for  the  resoluteness  which  marked  its  construction;  for  the  noble 
purpose  which  threw  wide  open  its  doors  for  its  splendid  educational 
career. 

We  thank  Thee  that  by  Thy  kind  providence  this  Institution  not  only 
has  made  real  the  great  ideal  of  its  honored  founder,  but  in  its  development 
and  growth  and  achievement  has  surpassed  even  his  beautiful  dream. 

As  we  look  back  through  all  Thy  protecting  care  during  these  one  hun- 
dred years  we  are  made  profoundly  grateful  for  the  wonderful  career  and 
extraordinary  record  of  this  University. 

By  Thy  blessing  it  has  been  a  Fountain  of  knowledge,  where  many 
have  refreshed  themselves;  a  School  of  Training  where  many  have  been 
fitted  for  life  work ;  an  Academy  in  the  shades  of  which  many  have  gathered 
about  its  great  teachers  and  have  been  enriched  by  their  wisdom. 

In  Thy  leading,  to  it  youths  have  come  in  the  glow  of  life's  morning. 
From  it  they  have  gone  forth  men,  qualified  and  incited  to  do  great  deeds 
and  achieve  great  results.  By  Thy  favor  this  Benign  Mother  has  sent  her 
sons  out  from  these  sacred  scenes  with  benefits  and  blessings  from  her  hand 
and  heart. 

They  in  turn  by  their  successful  and  brilliant  careers  have  rendered  yet 
more  illustrious  their  Alma  Mater. 

Looking  toward  the  future  we  invoke  for  this  honored  and  beloved 
University  divine  guidance.  May  all  that  has  proved  good  in  the  past  be 
preserved.  ■  May  all  that  is  good  in  the  keeping  of  the  future  be  bestowed  in 
great  fulness  on  this  Institution. 

May  it  ever  stand  for  highest  ideals,  for  accurate  and  extensive  scholar- 
ship, for  truth  and  honor,  for  noblest  character. 

Bless  the  Board  of  Visitors  with  wisdom  to  guide  its  affairs.  Bless  the 
Faculty  that  in  every  way  they  may  meet  their  great  responsibilities. 

Bless  the  students  of  the  past,  present  and  future.  May  they  as  year 
by  year  they  go  forth  from  this  educational  retreat,  go  forth  in  all  the 
glory  of  superb  character  to  be  an  honor  to  the  State,  the  Nation  and  the 
World. 

Bless  all  the  great  educational  institutions  that  by  their  distinguished 
represefftatives  have  conveyed  their  salutations  and  congratulations  to 
this  University  on  this  Centennial  of  its  life  and  work. 

In  the  great  partnership  of  intellectual  life  and  work  may  this  high  art 
of  teaching  and  learning  attain  its  noblest  reach  and  broadest  culture. 
May  supreme  human  culture  ever  delight  to  sit  humbly  at  the  feet  of  Him 
who  is  Truth  and  who  by  the  Truth  makes  Free. 

Amen. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  131 

A  CENTENNIAL  ADDRESS 

By  President  Edwin  Anderson  Alderman,  D.C.L.,  LL.D.,  of  the  University  of 

Virginia 

The  Father  of  this  University,  whose  name  has  been  upon  the  lips  of 
so  many  during  these  days  of  commemoration,  combined  in  his  vivid  person- 
ahty  something  of  the  insight  of  the  prophet,  the  imagination  of  the  artist, 
and  the  engineer's  passion  for  constructive  detail.  Like  Kubla  Khan  in 
Xanadu,  he  could  here  a  stately  culture-dome  decree,  but  he  had  no  satis- 
faction until  he  had  set  down  with  a  precise  hand  the  specifications  of  the 
dream  structure  looming  in  the  eye  of  his  mind,  enumerated  its  concrete 
tasks,  and  defined  its  immediate  objectives.  So  clearly  did  he  do  this  that 
he  has  enrolled  his  name  among  those  who  cannot  be  passed  by  in  any  enu- 
meration of  the  educational  reformers  of  the  modern  world. 

As  the  culminating  unit  in  the  great  national  moulding  force  which  he — 
first  of  American  educators — conceived  education  to  be,  he  drew  in  one  com- 
prehensive sweep  a  charter  of  University  function.  It  was  declared  that  the 
task  of  the  University  was 

"(i)  To  form  the  statesmen,  legislators,  and  judges  on  whom  public 
prosperity  and  individual  happiness  are  so  much  to  depend ; 

"  (2)  To  expound  the  principles  and  structure  of  government,  the  laws 
which  regulate  the  intercourse  of  nations,  those  formed  municipally  for  our 
own  government,  and  a  sound  spirit  of  legislation  which,  banishing  all  un- 
necessary restraint  on  individual  action,  shall  leave  us  free  to  do  whatever 
does  not  violate  the  equal  rights  of  another ; 

"  (3)  To  harmonize  and  promote  the  interests  of  agriculture,  manufac- 
tures, and  commerce,  and  by  well  informed  views  of  political  economy,  to 
give  a  free  scope  to  the  public  industry ; 

"(4)  To  develop  the  reasoning  faculties  of  our  youth,  enlarge  their 
minds,  cultivate  their  morals,  and  instil  into  them  the  precepts  of  virtue  and 
order; 

"(5)  To  enlighten  them  with  mathematical  and  physical  sciences, 
which  advance  the  arts  and  administer  to  the  health,  the  subsistence  and 
comforts  of  human  life ; 

"(6)  And,  generally,  to  form  them  to  habits  of  reflection  and  correct 
action,  rendering  them  examples  of  virtue  to  others  and  of  happiness  within 
themselves." 

It  may  be  doubted  if  any  agent  of  society  ever  received  general  orders 
more  liberal  and  catholic  than  these  as  it  adventured  forth  to  enlighten  and 
elevate  human  thinking  and  increase  human  knowledge.  Let  us  recall  that 
they  were  drawn  up  in  the  first  quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Neverthe- 
less, the  light  from  the  sun  of  the  democratic  theory,  then  not  high  advanced 
in  the  heavens,  illuminates  each  separate  syllable.  Inherent  in  them  may 
be  seen  that  interdependence  of  democracy  and  education  which  con- 


132  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

stitutes  the  basis  of  modern  society,  and  out  of  them  alone  might  be  deduced 
the  belief  that  in  this  secular  world  the  highest  optimism  of  mankind  is  em- 
bodied in  the  democratic  theory  and  given  heart  and  substance  by  the 
processes  of  education. 

I  fancy  there  is  clear  to  all  of  you  the  curious,  impressive  likeness  be- 
tween the  scene  of  the  world  as  it  then  lay  before  Jefferson's  vision  and  the 
scene  of  the  world  that  our  own  eyes  behold.  The  century  was  young  then 
as  now.  The  slumbering  injustice  of  ages  had  awakened  and  broken  up  the 
settled  forms  of  order  and  society  only  to  develop  its  own  special  brand  of 
chaos,  a  vaster  philosophy  of  force,  and  to  meet  its  doom  then  as  now  before 
the  free  and  unconquerable  spirit  of  man.  A  world  in  transition  and  con- 
fusion had  forgotten  its  high,  unselfish  emotions,  succumbed  to  temporary- 
pessimism  and  disillusion,  substituted  personal  and  class  aggrandizement 
for  patriotic  passion,  and,  freed  from  the  fierce  stimulus  of  war,  exhibited 
lassitude  and  a  tendency  to  turn  from  big  issues  to  immediate  economic 
advantages.  Then,  as  now,  men  felt  that  they  beheld  the  end  of  an  age  and 
the  beginning  of  another  epoch;  and  the  new  seminary  of  1819,  like  the  ma- 
ture mother  of  19 19,  faced  a  convalescent  world,  fretful  in  its  moods,  let 
down  in  its  morale,  dull  in  its  thinking,  commonplace  in  its  ideals,  waiting 
irresolutely  for  guidance  into  right  paths  of  peace  and  reconstruction.  Then, 
as  always,  in  this  troubled  but  advancing  world,  the  saving  remnant  saw  the 
two  great  forces  of  permanent  reconstruction — youth,  unbound  by  tradition, 
unbroken  by  war,  undepressed  by  events,  because  sustained  by  the  glorious 
buoyancy  that  surrounds  the  morning  of  life,  and,  secondly,  a  new  social 
theory  of  intelligent  cooperation  for  the  common  good  supplanting  dull 
autocracy  or  benevolent  despotism.  Though  thus  ahke  in  certain  outward 
external  characteristics,  the  transformation  of  the  daring  Republican  experi- 
ment of  the  west  during  the  passing  of  this  century  from  a  hope  to  a  reality, 
the  growth  of  democracy  from  the  status  of  a  dogma  to  the  status  of  a  prac- 
tical governmental  policy,  the  application  of  natural  science  through  inven- 
tions to  human  needs,  inaugurating  the  most  rapid  and  extensive  industrial 
revolution  in  all  history,  the  advent  of  nationalism  and  its  investment  with 
almost  religious  sanction,  separate  the  eras  by  a  gulf  of  political  motive  and 
social  purpose.  It  would  seem  to  be  a  proper  time  to  enquire  if  our  Uni- 
versity, sent  forth  so  confidently,  instructed  so  minutely,  and  beholding  so 
clear  a  field  of  operation,  has  thus  far  played  a  just  part  in  the  drama  of 
democratic  society?  Has  it  met  the  specifications  of  the  great  educational 
architect  fairly  and  honestly?  Let  us  not  be  tempted  into  mere  boasting, 
for  it  is  the  last  word  of  vulgarity,  but  I  do  proudly  claim  that  the  Univer- 
sity, which  forever  hereafter  you  shall  acclaim  as  your  Alma  Mater,  has, 
under  tragic  difficulties,  fulfilled  the  law  and  satisfied  the  contract,  and  has, 
therefore,  a  right  to  stand  upright  here  to-day  looking  along  the  paths  of  the 


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Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         i33 

new  century  with  the  vigor  and  purpose  that  come  of  an  unclouded  con- 
science and  a  quiet  spirit.  Have  the  young  men  of  successive  generations 
nourished  here — twenty-two  thousand  in  all — done  their  duty  to  the  public 
and  kept  their  honor  clean  ?  I  challenge  the  records  of  the  nation's  service  in 
all  vocations,  the  rolls  of  the  Senate,  the  Cabinet  and  diplomatic  service, 
the  Governor's  chair,  the  roster  of  the  Army  and  Navy,  for  proof  that  they 
have  so  lived  and  acted.  This  University  has  faced  each  crisis  in  the  prog- 
ress of  the  national  life  from  the  period  of  raw  confidence  in  its  virile  youth 
to  the  portentous  strength  and  moral  dominance  of  the  present  most  vener- 
able republic  of  the  world,  with  the  leadership  suited  to  each  crisis;  and  it 
has  made  for  itself  institutionally  in  travail  and  self-examination  a  definite 
spirit  and  an  atmosphere  compounded  of  intense  individualism,  democratic 
sympathy,  religious  freedom,  uncompromising  integrity,  distinction  of 
standards  and  austere  toil.  These  are  granite  virtues,  and  a  house  built 
upon  them,  let  us  thank  God,  is  built  upon  a  base  that  revolutionary  storms 
cannot  disintegrate  or  waste  away. 

You  and  I,  young  men,  have  business  with  this  University  no  less 
solemn,  significant,  and  fateful,  than  the  work  which  Thomas  Jefferson  and 
his  associates  found  to  do,  and  which  has  been  carried  on  so  faithfully  by 
great  teachers  and  scholars  of  succeeding  generations.  It  may  be  that  we 
shall  not  look  upon  their  like  again,  for  they  were  great  democrats  who 
issued  out  of  aristocracy,  and  our  reliance  riiust  be,  in  this  later  age,  upon 
great  aristocrats  bred  of  democracy.  But  the  University  which  they  built 
stands  here  still  for  us  to  perpetuate  a  symbol  of  deathless  fecundity,  in- 
stitutionally barely  mature,  its  strength  even  now  multiplied  a  hundred-fold, 
its  responsibility  a  thousand-fold.  Here  the  nation,  its  wildernesses  con- 
quered, its  wealth  piled  up,  its  civilization  composite  of  all  mankind,  its 
surging  society  made  over  literally  in  industrial  method  and  social  aim, 
beset  with  new  perils  and  temptations,  and  awed  by  new  grandeurs,  seeks 
direction  toward  an  ideal  of  Americanism  which  shall  somehow  define 
repubHcan  citizenship  in  terms  of  enduring  value  for  all  mankind.  Yonder 
throngs  over  wider  lawns  and  greater  spaces  and  through  nobler  edifices 
at  our  bi-centennial,  the  great  assize  of  your  great  grandchildren,  asking 
with  appraising  minds,  and  the  old  sentimental  loyalties,  what  part  their 
University  has  played  in  the  State  and  the  nation  and  the  world  as  the  great 
social  theory  out  of  which  it  was  born,  still  further  unfolded  its  purposes, 
enlarged  its  implications,  and  strove  toward  its  ultimate  ascendancy.  In 
that  far  future,  we  shall  be  the  past,  and  we  shall  be  a  worthy  past  in  propor- 
tion as  we  have  served  the  present  future.  No  past  ever  wins  respectability, 
much  less  reverence,  in  any  other  way.  We  shall  serve  the  future  worthily 
in  the  degree  in  which  we  approach  the  majestic  problem  of  human  progress 
with  openness  of  mind,  with  clear  knowledge  that  does  not  deceive  itself. 


134         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

with  faith  in  trained  men,  and  with  sympathy  for  humanity  erected  into  a 
practical  philosophy. 

Liberalism,  faith  in  God  and  man,  sound  and  varied  learning  forever 
pushing  back  the  horizons  of  knowledge,  human  cooperation — these  are  the 
cornerstones  of  the  university  of  the  future.  Without  them  democracy 
itself  may  become  a  tyranny  more  gross  and  rapacious  than  ever  cursed 
society  and  mere  learning,  as  we  ourselves  have  seen  it,  the  sword  of  the 
cruel  and  the  selfish  instead  of  the  torch  of  him  who  seeks  the  truth. 

I  am  aware  that  I  seem  to  indicate  a  program  of  idealism  so  vast  and 
slow  as  to  suggest  the  processes  of  geologic  growth.  I  am  aware,  too,  that 
this  program  involves  dealing  with  all  grades  and  conditions  of  men,  and 
may  seem  to  take  not  sufficient  thought  of  the  obvious  and  immediate,  or  to 
yield  brilliant  and  romantic  results,  but  in  its  patient  grandeur  and  resistless 
strength,  it  is  warp  and  woof  of  the  mighty  theory  inherent  in  its  logic  and 
necessary  to  its  progress.  Undoubtedly  what  the  world  most  urgently  and 
constantly  needs  is  unusual  and  capable  individuals  who  are  valuable  to 
life.  I,  for  one,  do  not  fear  that  education  thus  considered  as  a  great  social- 
izing force,  slowly  moulding  national  life  into  higher  forms,  will  miss  these 
precious  sports  and  rare  individuals,  and  thus  flatten  out  the  surface  of  life 
into  amiable  mediocrity.  I  rather  believe  that  the  stature  of  mankind  is  in 
process  of  definite  enlargement  and  that  its  giants  will  be  giants  still  and 
taller  if  less  detached  and  lonely.  The  qualities  of  men  must  make  such 
differences  in  them  forever  as  to  preclude  the  fall  of  life  to  dull  common- 
placeness.  The  liberalism  which  I  have  planted  as  the  first  cornerstone  of 
the  University  of  the  future,  though  far  too  comprehensive  a  creed  to  be 
written  out  here,  means  essentially  emancipation  from  the  dead  hand  of  any 
authority  that  rests  upon  the  human  mind  or  spirit,  to  paralyze  its  energies 
or  weaken  its  ardor.  It  means  protest  against  treating  as  if  it  were  a  mutiny 
in  a  regiment  the  thinking  of  thinkers  or  the  play  of  the  conscience.  John 
Morley  points  out  that,  after  all,  respect  for  the  dignity  and  worth  of  the 
individual  is  its  real  root  and  while,  like  democracy  itself,  it  is  charged  with 
explosives,  almost  everything  that  is  new  in  any  age  may  be  traced  to  its 
hand,  Thomas  Jefferson  was  a  greater  liberal  than  John  Morley.  Those 
who  invoke  his  name  as  a  static  influence  in  modern  life  have  never  met  the 
man  himself  but  only  a  wraith  conjured  up  out  of  ignorance  or  misunder- 
standing. They  certainly  do  not  understand  the  young  Albemarle  farmer- 
lawyer,  who  at  the  age  of  twenty-two,  stood  tip-toe  in  the  hall  of  the  House 
of  Delegates,  at  Williamsburg,  and  listened  with  bated  breath  to  the  fierce 
eloquence  of  Patrick  Henry,  and  at  the  age  of  thirty- three,  after  giving  the 
world  the  Declaration  of  American  Independence,  appeared  in  the  colonial 
Capitol  of  the  Old  Dominion  with  four  or  five  bills  in  his  pocket  which  pro- 
posed to  revolutionize  the  existing  social  order  and  to  inaugurate  a  new 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         135 

economic,  religious,  and  educational  life  in  the  Commonwealth.  In  letters 
to  Joseph  Priestley  and  others,  Jefferson  thus  set  forth  a  plain  philosophy  of 
belief  in  the  orderly  growth  of  human  institutions  unhindered  by  dull 
conservatism : 

"The  Gothic  idea  that  we  were  to  look  backwards  instead  of  forwards 
for  the  improvement  of  the  human  mind,  and  to  recur  to  the  annals  of  our 
ancestors  for  what  is  most  perfect  in  government,  in  religion  and  in  learning, 
is  worthy  of  those  bigots  in  religion  and  government,  by  whom  it  has  been 
recommended,  and  whose  purposes  it  would  answer.  But  it  is  not  an  idea 
which  this  country  will  endure. 

"When  I  contemplate  the  immense  advances  in  science  and  discoveries 
in  the  arts  which  have  been  made  within  the  period  of  my  life,  I  look  forward 
with  confidence  to  equal  advances  by  the  present  generation,  and  have  no 
doubt  they  will  consequently  be  as  much  wiser  than  we  have  been  as  we  than 
our  fathers  were  and  they  than  the  burners  of  witches. 

"We  might  as  well  require  a  man  to  wear  still  the  coat  which  fitted  him 
when  a  boy,  as  civilized  society  to  remain  under  the  regimen  of  their  an- 
cestors." 

The  World  War,  just  ended,  subjected  the  social  theory,  out  of  which 
this  University  was  born  and  to  which  it  is  dedicated,  to  a  pitiless  cross- 
examination  by  the  mind  and  spirit  of  mankind.  What  is  the  verdict  ?  It  is 
generally  agreed  that  this  theory  has  accomplished  more  for  the  improve- 
ment of  human  society  than  any  other  social  scheme  in  history,  that  it  is 
nevertheless  no  patent  social  panacea  and  harbors  many  weaknesses.  It 
is  agreed  by  some  with  alarm  that  it  has  greatly  advanced  its  point  of  view 
from  a  theory  of  the  political  rights  of  man  to  a  theory  of  social  and  eco- 
nomic fairness  and  even  perfection.  It  is  clear  that  it  is  triumphant,  indeed 
that  it  is  about  the  only  thing  in  the  past  century  that  has  never  stopped 
advancing,  despite  the  apparent  collapse  of  19 14,  from  its  faint  beginnings  as 
small  group  cooperation  for  the  protection  of  common  rights  to  the  emer- 
gence of  the  Covenant  of  the  League  of  Nations,  the  bravest  and  most  reason- 
able effort  in  all  political  history  to  rationalize  world  relations  and  to  protect 
all  mankind  against  its  deadliest  enemy.  However  severe  an  indictment 
may  be  brought  against  it  as  a  perfect  system,  its  defenders  can  safely  put 
the  question — What  better  alternative  do  you  offer  ?  Did  not  the  American, 
the  French,  and  the  British  democracies,  under  the  great  test,  demonstrate 
the  essential  spiritual  validity  at  least  of  the  doctrine  and  give  proof  that 
its  strength  was  grounded  on  the  best  there  is  in  the  nature  of  man? 

The  eighteenth  century  sought  the  answer  to  the  question — What  are 
the  rights  of  man?  It  was  the  age  of  Constitutions,  Declarations,  Revolu- 
tions. The  insistent  query  of  the  nineteenth  century  was — How  are  these 
rights  to  be  made  available  for  the  production  of  wealth  ?    The  twentieth 


136         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

century,  which  most  concerns  us  and  which  we  must  deal  with,  is  grappling 
with  the  problem — ^What  is  the  duty  of  society  in  regard  to  the  wealth  which 
it  has  created  and  the  liberty  which  it  inherited  ?  Lord  Bryce  asserts  that 
the  ideal  of  securing  material  conditions  of  comfort  and  well-being  for 
everybody,  erected  into  a  doctrine  of  humanitarianism,  has  so  dominated 
the  minds  of  modern  leaders  as  to  endanger  and  obsciu-e  all  other  ideals  and 
especially  the  ideal  of  individual  liberty.  Men  fear  discomfort  more  than 
tyranny  and  hardship  more  than  autocrats.  The  great  question  of  our  time, 
then,  toward  the  solution  of  which  universities  must  fm-nish  right  wisdom, 
is  to  restore  liberty  conceived  in  the  old  American  sense  to  the  place  it  once 
held  in  men's  thoughts  and  yet  to  find  somehow  the  golden  mean  between 
the  individualism  which  safeguards  human  freedom  and  the  collectivism 
which  ensures  social  progress.  Men  will  no  longer  love  a  government  which 
seems  to  them  merely  "anarchy  plus  the  policeman,"  and  they  will  not  have 
any  government  to  love  if  it  shall  become  a  vast  benevolent  society  pre- 
occupied principally  with  promoting  material  welfare. 

The  solid  glory  of  this  nation,  or  any  nation,  must,  it  would  seem,  finally 
be  determined  by  its  ability  to  comprehend  and  readapt  the  theory  and 
practice  of  democracy  as  it  reacts  upon  society  in  its  progressive  changes  as 
an  eternal  faith  elastic  enough  to  confront  and  strong  enough  to  overcome 
the  changing  forms  of  human  error  and  injustice.  As  democracy  thus 
redefines  itself,  education,  as  its  foremost  policy,  must  redefine  itself,  and  the 
University  as  the  chief  servant  of  education  must  re-examine  and  re-relate 
its  power  to  the  life  about  it. 

Do  not  imagine  that  I  shall  here  seek  to  define  an  American  University 
in  any  rigid  terms.  Experience  has  been  called  the  best  definer,  and  the 
pressure  of  social  situations  the  logical  moulder.  For  us  Jefferson's  educa- 
tional specifications  stand  as  steadfast  in  their  field  as  his  other  great  Charter 
in  the  field  of  political  liberty,  needing  only  to  be  expanded  to  meet  the 
needs  of  a  world  society  made  into  one  organic  unit  by  the  rise  of  new  scien- 
tific inventions  and  economic  laws,  the  advent  of  new  professions,  the  call  of 
new  knowledges,  the  implications  of  that  great  modern  outlook  which  pro- 
claims that  the  community  must  seek  to  obtain  for  all  of  its  children  what 
the  wisest  parent  desires  for  his  own  child. 

I  dare  to  declare  to  you,  young  gentlemen,  my  belief  that  the  future  of 
this  University  will  not  be  unworthy  of  its  past.  The  century  that  hes 
before  us  with  its  unimagined  wealth  of  new  truth  and  new  aspirations  and 
new  entanglements  will  behold  the  University  of  Virginia,  clothed  in  greater 
strength  and  beauty,  standing,  as  of  old,  at  the  northern  gateway  of  the 
South,  embodying  in  its  physical  form  and  spiritual  essence  something  of  the 
note  of  romanticism,  with  its  central  quality  of  exaltation  of  personality, 
its  deep  loyalties  and  that  balancing  power  of  conservatism  peculiar  to  the 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  i37 

region  out  of  which  it  sprang.  Power  to  interpret  the  distinct  sections  of 
American  life  to  each  other  will  reside  in  it,  and  out  of  it  will  issue  into  the 
mighty  national  stream  the  values  of  old  Americanism  and  the  best  inherit- 
ances of  the  English  consciousness,  moulding  the  individual  man  into  dignity 
of  life  and  skilled  usefulness,  and  yet  working  toward  a  larger  collective 
future,  where  every  man  may  seek  to  earn  a  power  to  use  and  a  dignity  to 
cherish. 

As  a  Fortress  of  truth  hardly  won,  I  behold  it  undertaking  to  assemble 
and  preserve  the  bequests  of  civilization  in  its  museums,  libraries,  and 
laboratories.  As  a  Workshop,  it  will  be  busy  seeking  to  liberate  the  mind 
and  spirit  of  men  and  women  by  acquiring  through  honest  work  the  truth 
that  exists  and  winning  through  discovery  the  truth  that  lures,  while  through 
wise  selective  processes,  it  will  sift  the  masses  of  young  scholars  and  crafts- 
men within  its  walls  for  talent  and  genius.  This  is  its  daily,  primary,  ele- 
mental task.  In  this  Workshop  scholarship  is  the  product  sought  for  and 
the  power  to  adjust  the  mind  to  the  greater  issue  as  it  arises,  the  end  aimed 
at.  As  a  Dynamo  I  perceive  it  sending  its  force  through  all  the  avenues  of 
life  in  such  fashion  as  to  touch  and  mould  the  sources  of  public  opinion,  thus 
realizing  Fichte's  dream  of  a  University  as  a  place  from  which,  as  from  the 
spiritual  heart  of  a  community,  a  ciu-rent  of  life  energy  might  be  poured 
through  all  of  its  members.  As  a  Commander-in-Chief  in  the  great  warfare 
against  incompetence,  it  will  seek  to  coordinate  the  whole  daring  process  of 
public  education — elementary,  secondary,  cultural,  and  vocational — into 
one  unified  servant  of  the  State,  in  accordance  with  Edmund  Biu"ke's  noble 
conception  of  the  relation  between  the  State  and  the  University  as  "a 
partnership  in  all  science,  a  partnership  in  all  art,  a  partnership  in  every 
virtue  and  in  all  perfection,  and,  since  such  a  partnership  cannot  be  attained 
in  one  generation,  a  partnership  between  all  those  who  are  living  and  those 
who  are  dead  and  those  who  are  unborn."  As  a  Watch-tower,  it  shall  stand 
upon  its  hill  and  strive  to  discern  and  comprehend  the  flow  of  life  about 
its  base,  so  that  it  may  furnish,  through  trained  leadership,  technical 
guidance,  liberal  direction,  and  spiritual  power  to  that  life.  As  an  Altar 
and  a  Home,  seated  amid  classical  and  peaceful  scenes,  where  friend- 
ships are  made  and  convictions  formed  and  youth  emerges  through  self- 
expression  into  manhood,  it  will  contrive  to  distill  an  atmosphere  to 
which  the  creators  of  the  new  civilization  may  repair  for  quiet  standards 
of  straight  thinking,  good  taste.  Christian  living,  clean  honor,  and 
fidelity  to  trust.  As  a  Lighthouse,  it  shall  rise  above  the  tempests  of 
the  times,  a  beacon  to  those  who  voyage  in  darkness,  a  shelter  to  those 
who  have  found  the  light,  a  luminous  guide  to  juster  and  wiser  paths  of 
action  and  life. 

And  now,  finally,  young  gentlemen  of  the  Class  of  1921,  may  I  recall  to 


138         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

you  that  you  are  in  a  very  real  sense  a  most  fortunate  group.  You  entered 
here  as  a  class  when  the  University  was  a  military  camp,  organized  to  train 
you  to  become  soldiers  of  your  country  then  engaged  in  a  great  war  in  de- 
fense of  liberty  and  public  right.  You  have  served  under  the  flag  of 
your  country  by  land  and  sea  and  in  the  air.  You  reach  your  collegiate 
climax  amid  the  big  emotions,  tender  memories,  and  high  hopes  of  this 
Centennial  festival,  and  you  pass  out  into  a  world  sadly  out  of  joint  and 
calling  for  brave  and  capable  men  to  set  it  straight.  I  believe  you  are 
men  of  such  quality.  I  bear  testimony  that  you  have  borne  yourselves 
handsomely  in  this  University  world.  You  are  to  take  your  part  in  your 
country's  life  in  a  period  of  world-wide  dramatic  unrest,  of  definite  conflict 
between  the  old  American  individualism  and  the  demands  of  new  social 
and  industrial  organization.  To  do  your  part  well  will  test  you  to  the  ut- 
most in  mind  and  character.  The  spirit  of  youth  is  the  salvation  of  society. 
Your  University  has  affection  for  you  and  faith  in  you. 

"I  do  not  know  beneath  what  sky 
Or  on  what  sea  shall  be  thy  fate ; 
I  only  know  it  shall  be  high, 
I  only  know  it  shall  be  great." 


ANNOUNCEMENTS  BY  THE  PRESIDENT  OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

One  year  ago  the  alumni  of  this  University  conceived  the  plan  of  pre- 
senting to  their  Alma  Mater,  on  her  One  Hundredth  Birthday,  a  gift  ex- 
pressive of  their  faith  and  gratitude.  On  March  7th,  after  wise  organi- 
zation, the  movement  was  launched  to  realize  this  purpose.  I  need  not 
remind  this  company  that  this  has  been  a  period  of  unusual  depression 
in  the  world  of  business.  I  hold  in  my  hand  a  statement  authorized 
by  John  Stewart  Bryan  and  Frederic  William  Scott,  Joint  Chairmen  of 
the  Centennial  Endowment  Fund,  and  prepared  by  Armistead  Mason 
Dobie,  Executive  Director  of  the  Fund,  formally  presenting  this  gift  to 
the  University  of  Virginia,  and  informing  me  that  its  total  amounts,  to 
date,  to  $1,300,000. 

In  behalf  of  the  Governing  Bodies  and  the  Faculties  of  the  University, 
I  accept  this  handsome  gift  of  her  loyal  sons,  of  two  great  foundations — the 
Carnegie  Corporation  and  the  General  Education  Board — and  of  wise 
patriotic  citizens  of  this  State  and  nation  who  were  not  trained  here,  but 
who  believe  it  to  be  for  the  public  good  that  Jefferson's  University  should  be 
properly  equipped  to  face  the  demands  of  the  new  century.    The  gratitude 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         i39 

and  appreciation  of  this  University  goes  out  in  full  measure  to  every  sub- 
scriber to  this  fund. 

I  have  mentioned  Messrs.  John  Stewart  Bryan  and  Frederic  William 
Scott,  the  Chairmen  of  the  Fund,  who  have  given  of  their  best  strength  and 
substance  to  this  movement.  I  take  leave  to  mention  again  with  gratitude 
the  name  of  the  Executive  Director,  Armistead  Mason  Dobie,  who  has  given 
to  this  work  for  one  year  his  ability,  energy,  and  devotion,  without  stint. 
I  cannot  pass  by  the  names  of  Lewis  Crenshaw  who  has  devoted  his  strength 
to  Alumni  service  and  Charles  A.  McKeand,  who  has  served  so  ably  as 
Executive  Secretary.  I  wish  time  was  afforded  me  to  call  the  roll  of  the 
faithful  regional  chairmen  and  indeed  the  whole  list  of  subscribers — altunni 
and  non-alumni.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  their  names  will  find  place  in  our 
history  and  in  our  hearts,  and  we  shall  not  forget  them.  Such  manifesta- 
tions of  public  spirit  are  rare  in  the  lives  of  state  universities.  It  is  the 
State's  business  to  maintain  and  develop  its  own  University.  If  it  seemed 
proper  after  a  century  of  service  that  the  privilege  of  giving  to  this  faithful 
agent  of  society  should  be  afforded  to  good  citizens  and  loyal  sons  every- 
where, it  was  not  intended  to  relieve  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia  of  the 
primary  duty  and  responsibility  of  maintaining  adequately  an  institution 
which  it  brought  into  life  and  which  exists  to  serve  its  people.  In  recent 
years,  the  State  has  greatly  increased  its  appropriations  to  higher  education 
and  under  circumstances  of  great  difficulty.  May  this  example  of  general 
public  appreciation  incite  Virginia  to  still  more  adequate  treatment  of  its 
chief  est  public  servant ! 

It  is  my  pleasure  to  announce  further,  as  an  independent  gift  to  the 
University  of  Virginia,  the  sum  of  5l&200,ooo,  for  the  distinct  purpose  of  es- 
tablishing, on  the  basis  now  existing,  a  Department  of  Commerce  and  Fi- 
nance in  this  University.  This  contribution  is  the  gift  of  a  great  citizen  and 
far-seeing  student  of  social  affairs  in  his  own  State  and  the  nation — Paul 
Goodloe  Mclntire. 

Mr.  Mclntire  has  already  enrolled  himself  among  the  great  benefactors 
of  the  University — indeed  the  very  greatest  in  its  history — and  of  this  com- 
munity in  so  distinguished  a  way  as  to  make  it  difficult  to  add  new  appre- 
ciation to  his  services.  In  the  School  of  Fine  Arts,  bearing  his  name,  he  has 
sought  to  care  for  the  spiritual  and  cultural  aspects  of  life.  In  this  new 
department,  he  seeks  to  care  in  a  high  way  for  training  in  the  great 
field  which  develops  trade  and  commerce  and  material  prosperity. 
The  South  has  furnished  more  than  its  share  of  great  soldiers,  states- 
men and  lawyers.  It  is  his  belief  that  we  must  now  prepare  to  train 
great  business  men  for  the  important  services  of  trade  and  commerce. 
The  University  repeats  its  former  expressions  of  gratitude  to  this  wise 
helper  of  men. 


140         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

ADDRESSES  AT  DEPARTMENTAL  ALUMNI  CONFERENCES 
I.    The  Clerical  Alumni 

RELIGIOUS     MINISTRATIONS  IN  STATE  UNIVERSITIES  BY  DENOMINATIONAL 

AGENCIES 

By  Rev.  Beverley  D.  Tucker,  Jr.,  D.D.,  of  the  Episcopal  Theological  Seminary, 

Alexandria,  Va. 

The  opportunity  for  service  which  the  State  universities  offer  to  the 
Church  is  one  that  has  been  largely  neglected  in  the  past.  The  older  uni- 
versities and  colleges  in  America  were  established  under  definitely  religious 
auspices,  and  long  after  the  rise  of  the  State  university  the  various  Christian 
communions  tended  to  limit  their  sense  of  responsibility  to  those 
educational  institutions,  which  bore  the  imprimatur  of  their  respective 
denominations. 

Moreover,  with  the  principle  of  the  separation  of  Church  and  State 
fundamental  in  our  national  constitution,  the  problem  of  how  the  Church 
may  wisely  minister  in  a  State  university  is  a  delicate  and  complicated  one. 
The  utmost  care  has  to  be  exercised  to  avoid  denominational  prejudices — 
no  system  will  be  tolerated  in  which  the  privileges  are  not  theoretically  equal 
for  members  of  every  religious  affiliation.  As  a  corollary  of  this  principle  of 
religious  freedom,  the  system  adopted  should  not  involve  any  form  of  coer- 
cion ;  attendance  upon  religious  exercises  must  needs  be  voluntary. 

Dr.  Philip  A.  Bruce  has  recently  described  at  length  (in  his  History  of 
the  University  of  Virginia)  the  extreme  caution  which  Jefferson  observed  in 
eliminating  every  trace  of  denominational  influence  in  the  formative  period 
of  the  University  of  Virginia's  life.  So  scrupulous  was  he  to  enforce  his 
fundamental  principle  that  "education  and  sectarianism  must  be  divorced," 
that  in  his  original  plan  for  the  University,  states  Dr.  Bruce,  he  made  no 
real  concession  to  religious  feeling  beyond  providing  a  room  in  the  Rotunda 
for  religious  worship. 

As  religion,  however,  is  an  irrepressible  factor  in  human  life,  the  de- 
mand that  the  University  should  be  other  than  neutral  in  religious  expression 
soon  made  itself  felt.  The  first  proposal  to  make  good  this  deficiency  was 
put  forward  by  Jefferson  himself.  The  proposal  was  that  each  of  the  prin- 
cipal denominations  should  establish  its  own  theological  school  just  without 
the  confines  of  the  institution.  Thereby  would  have  been  established  a 
natural  liaison  between  the  secular  education  of  the  State  and  the  religious 
education  of  the  Christian  communions.  One  can  only  voice  the  regret  that 
the  leaders  of  the  Church  in  that  day  had  not  the  vision  to  carry  out  the 
proposal.  Through  such  an  arrangement  mutual  confidence  and  respect 
might  have  been  the  resulting  relationship  between  the  religious  and  educa- 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  141 

tional  forces  of  the  State  rather  than  the  suspicion  and  misunderstanding 
that  has  too  frequently  characterized  their  mutual  attitude. 

While  this  opportunity  for  cooperation  between  the  University  and  the 
Church  on  a  large  scale  was  not  taken,  yet  the  demand  for  some  religious 
expression  in  the  life  of  the  faculty  and  students  soon  received  a  modified 
provision.  As  early  as  1829  a  plan  of  engaging  the  services  of  a  chaplain 
was  undertaken  by  those  interested.  The  support  was  arranged  by  volun- 
tary subscriptions,  and  the  chaplain  elected,  in  rotation,  from  the  leading 
denominations  of  the  State.  This  plan  continued  in  operation,  in  one  form 
or  another,  until  1896.  For  a  portion  of  this  period  regular  religious  services 
were  held  in  one  of  the  University  halls  set  apart  for  that  purpose ;  later,  a 
chapel  was  built  on  the  ground,  the  funds  for  the  purpose  being  contributed, 
not  by  the  State,  but  by  friends  and  alumni  of  the  institution. 

From  1896  until  191 7  the  plan  was  adopted  of  inviting  distinguished 
clergymen  from  the  various  denominations  to  conduct  religious  services  in 
the  Chapel  as  a  substitute  for  the  earlier  plan  of  having  a  resident  chaplain. 
The  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  through  its  general  secretary, 
stood  sponsor  for  the  plan  and,  in  addition  to  the  Sunday  services,  made 
provision  for  Bible  study  groups  and  fostered  opportunities  for  social  service. 

Theoretically  there  is  much  to  be  said  for  each  of  these  plans.  Their 
primary  motive  was  to  furnish  a  method  of  religious  cooperation,  which 
would  be  interdenominational  in  character.  Practically  neither  method 
proved  an  adequate  solution  of  the  real  situation.  The  latter  plan  lacked 
continuity  both  in  the  personality  of  the  leader  and  in  the  mode  of  worship. 
Both  plans  failed  to  furnish  any  definite  connection  with  the  previous  reHg- 
ious  training  of  the  students  or  to  make  any  positive  preparation  for  the 
church  life,  to  which  the  student  might  go  after  leaving  the  University. 

In  1 91 7,  the  Faculty  Committee  on  Religious  Exercises  decided  to  dis- 
continue the  chapel  services  and  to  make  an  appeal,  through  the  Charlottes- 
ville Ministerial  Association,  to  the  various  religious  denominations  to  as- 
sume a  more  definite  oversight  of  their  adherents  at  the  University.  The 
immediate  occasion  for  taking  this  step  was  the  general  upheaval  at  the 
University  owing  to  war  conditions,  but  the  committee  frankly  recognized 
that  the  chapel  system  had  served  its  day  and  had  become  a  burden  to  be 
borne  rather  than  a  stimulus  to  the  religious  life  of  the  University.  While 
such  a  system  might  supplement,  it  could  not  serve  as  a  substitute  for  the 
organized  ministrations  of  the  various  communions.  Moreover,  this  appeal 
to  the  Church  as  such  to  assume  the  leadership  in  providing  religious  op- 
portunities for  the  members  of  the  University  was  in  line  with  Jefferson's 
original  policy,  namely,  of  making  no  provision  for  theological  education  in 
the  University  curriculum  and  proposing  that  the  various  denominations 
should  establish  their  divinity  schools  in  the  university  neighborhood. 


142  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

As  early  as  1 910,  the  Episcopal  Church  had  taken  a  positive  step  in  this 
direction.  Recognizing  the  inadequacy  of  the  university  chapel  system  in 
providing  pastoral  oversight  and  cultivating  church  loyalty;  recognizing, 
furthermore,  the  practical  difficulty  of  adding  the  pastoral  care  of  the  Epis- 
copal students  at  the  University  to  the  extensive  parochial  duties  of  the 
rector  of  the  local  church  in  Charlottesville,  the  Diocese  of  Virginia  has 
organized  a  parish,  with  its  own  rector,  in  the  University  community,  for 
the  avowed  purpose  of  ministering  to  its  adherents  among  the  students  and 
faculty.  An  excellent  building  site  has  been  purchased  and  a  temporary 
chapel  erected,  where  for  the  past  ten  years  regular  services  have  been  held. 
The  plans  provide  for  the  building  of  a  permanent  church  as  soon  as  the 
funds  are  available. 

While  a  local  congregation,  over  and  above  the  student  and  faculty 
members,  has  come  into  being,  yet  the  work  is  regarded  in  the  nature  of  a 
diocesan  responsibility.  The  bishop  has  authority  to  insure  the  selection 
of  a  clergyman  who  is  qualified  to  be  a  helpful  pastor  and  preacher  to  a 
student  community,  and  the  diocese  assumes  the  obligation  of  assisting  the 
local  congregation  in  the  financial  outlay  for  building  and  retaining  such  a 
church. 

An  alternative  to  this  plan,  and  one  that  is  being  tried  in  many  State 
universities,  would  be  to  add  to  the  staff  of  the  local  congregation  a  student 
pastor,  who  will  serve  the  university  community  and  foster  the  affiliation  of 
the  students  with  the  Charlottesville  church  of  their  respective  de- 
nominations. 

The  fundamental  principle  to  be  observed  in  both  of  these  plans  is  this, 
that  the  State  University,  where  our  young  men  and  women  gather  from 
many  parts  of  the  country  at  a  critical  stage  in  their  intellectual  and  spirit- 
ual development,  should  be  regarded  as  a  special  field  of  service  by  the 
Church.  It  requires  an  oversight  more  definite  than  a  collegiate  chapel 
system  can  furnish.  It  calls  for  leaders,  who  are  especially  qualified  and 
trained  for  work  among  students ;  for  leaders,  moreover,  who  can  give  their 
whole  time  and  thought  to  the  moral  and  religious  life  of  the  university 
community;  and  is  a  work  of  too  great  importance  to  be  tacked  on  as  an 
incident  of  the  busy  life  of  a  local  rector  or  pastor. 

In  this  day  when  the  outlook  for  Christian  unity  seems  more  hopeful 
and  encouraging  than  in  the  past,  the  system  outlined  above  may  seem  to 
imply  a  backward  step,  a  building  higher  the  walls  of  partition.  Per- 
sonally, I  should  conceive  it  as  a  step  forward  in  the  direction  of  Chris- 
tian unity.  The  colorless,  vague  religion  of  a  college  chapel  makes  not  for 
religious  unity  but  for  religious  negation.  I  have  greater  confidence  in  the 
fact  that  a  group  of  broad-minded  student  pastors,  working  together  for  the 
moral  and  spiritual  life  of  the  University,  will  do  far  more  to  create  that 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  i43 

attitude  of  mutual  trust  and  tolerance,  which  is  the  first  step  toward  co- 
operation and  unity.  The  problems  confronting  the  different  college  pastors 
would  be  much  the  same.  Through  conference  and  through  combined  efforts 
in  service  extension  and  Bible  study  there  will  be  many  natural  opportuni- 
ties for  fellowship  in  the  Christian  life.  Unless  our  ideal  is  for  a  dead  uni- 
formity rather  than  for  a  lively  unity,  I  have  greater  hope  of  Christian  unity 
in  the  direction  of  positive  loyalties  than  of  amiable  negations. 


Abstract  of  an  Address  by  Rev.  Samuel  Chiles  Mitchell,  Ph.D.,  LL.D.,  of  the  University 

OF  Richmond 

Mr.  Chairman: 

In  addition  to  the  plans  of  the  preceding  speaker,  the  only  suggestion 
I  can  make  is  that  the  various  denominations  cooperate  with  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  in  the  maintenance  of  a  University  Preacher 
on  permanent  tenure.  In  this  way  I  believe  a  man  on  the  order  of  Phillips 
Brooks  could  be  secured,  who  would  give  his  whole  strength  and  time  to  the 
religious  life  of  the  University.  Such  a  man  as  Bishop  McDowell,  or  Dr. 
Gilkie,  or  Dr.  Jowett  would  make  a  lasting  impression  upon  the  University 
community  by  his  continuous  presence  and  by  his  messages,  springing  out 
of  the  changing  needs  of  the  student  body. 

The  advantages  of  a  permanent  tenure  over  the  chaplaincy  for  two 
years,  which  was  the  custom  in  my  student  days  here,  and  over  the  place  of 
having  different  visiting  ministers  from  Sunday  to  Sunday,  are  apparent. 
By  permanency  of  office  you  can  get  a  really  great  personality  whose  voice 
will  command  attention  everywhere.  His  interpretation  of  the  spiritual  Ufe 
will  be  progressive  in  spirit  and  cumulative  in  effect.  He  will  enter  sympa- 
thetically into  the  life  of  the  individual  student  as  well  as  reenforce  the  re- 
ligious purposes  of  the  University  community  as  a  whole. 

In  Madison  Hall  we  have  an  agency  with  which  the  denominations 
can  work  to  this  end.  Whatever  might  be  lost  to  specifically  denomina- 
tional interests  by  this  plan,  would  in  my  opinion  be  more  than  made  up  by 
the  emphasis  upon  the  essentials  of  Christianity  which  such  a  preacher  would 
give,  thus  enriching  religious  life  and  truth  for  all  through  the  University. 

HOW  MAY  RELIGIOUS  CULTURE  BE  GIVEN  TO  THE  STATE  UNIVERSITY 

COMMUNITY? 

By  Rev.  Thomas  Gary  Johnson,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  of  the  Union  Theological  Seminary,  Rich- 
mond, Va. 

The  subject  as  assigned — "Rehgious  Culture  in  State  Universities  by 
Denominational  Agencies"  suggests  several  theses  which  hardly  require 
discussion  in  this  body,  to  wit : 


144         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

First :  The  university  community  should  have  religious  culture. 

There  may  be  small  groups  of  people  here  and  there  which  would 
dispute  this  thesis ;  but  it  may  be  asserted  safely  that  the  vast  majority  of 
thoughtful  people  the  world  over  would  maintain  that  the  university  com- 
munity, as  certainly  as  it  is  included  within  the  grade  of  rational  and 
responsible  agents  and  as  certainly  as  it  is  to  exercise  an  indefinitely  large 
influence  for  weal  or  woe  on  the  rest  of  the  State,  should  have  religious  cul- 
ture. It  may  be  even  more  boldly  assumed,  also,  that  this  body  of  ' '  clerical 
alumni''  would  consider  it  worse  than  a  waste  of  time — an  impertinence, 
indeed — to  set  about  proving  on  this  occasion,  the  truth  of  a  thesis  which 
our  very  calling  proclaims  that  we  hold — a  thesis  which  we  can  deny  only  on 
pain  of  professing  ourselves  to  be  hypocrites. 

Second :  The  State  University  in  these  United  States  of  America  cannot 
of  itself  give  an  adequate  religious  culture. 

Men  are  found  to  say :  "If  theism  be  true  and  discovered,  and  if  its 
teaching  be  necessary  to  the  stability  of  the  State,  the  State  may  teach  it." 
Granted  for  the  sake  of  argument;  yet  we  all  say  that  bare  theism — the 
doctrine  of  a  personal  God,  the  Creator  and  Moral  Governor  of  the  Universe 
— ^is  inadequate  religious  culture;  and  for  adequate  religious  teaching  the 
State  has  neither  warrant  nor  fitness — no  warrant,  its  constitution  gives 
none ;  no  fitness  through  possession  of  an  adequate  religious  creed,  or  of  a 
holy  character.  So  far  is  it  from  possessing  an  adequate  creed  which  it  may 
teach,  its  sovereign  people  hold  some  of  them  one  thing  and  some  of  them 
the  contradictory  thereto.  Nor  has  the  State  the  holiness  of  character  to  be 
desired  in  a  teacher  of  religion.  The  State  as  represented  by  its  govern- 
ment, and  as  represented  by  the  Board  of  Regents  of  the  University,  may  be 
pious  in  one  era  and  impious  in  the  next.  The  State  has  no  fitness,  as  no 
commission,  to  teach  any  other  religion  than  bare  theism,  if  to  teach  that; 
and  its  attempting  to  do  so  would  be  an  impious  assumption. 

Good  Americans  and  good  Virginians,  it  is  taken  for  granted  that  we  all 
agree  that  the  State  must  not  attempt  to  give  an  adequate  religious  culture, 
and  that  the  State  University — an  organ  of  the  State — should  not  attempt  it. 

Third:  That  religious  denomination  which  possesses  in  its  creed  the 
largest  amount  of  cardinal  religious  truth,  is,  other  things  being  equal,  under 
the  weightiest  obligation  to  attempt  to  give  religious  culture  to  the  univer- 
sity community.  The  knowledge  of  religious  truth — the  truth  about  God, 
about  man's  relations  to  Him  and  man's  duties  to  Him  and  to  His  creatures 
— the  grasp  of  the  eternal  realities — is  a  possession,  a  leverage  for  uplift, 
which  any  true  ethics  urges  him,  who  has  it,  to  give  to  his  fellows.  That 
religious  denomination,  therefore,  which  claims  the  largest  possession  of 
religious  truth,  virtually  avows,  in  the  claim,  its  obligation,  circumstances 
permitting,  to  impart  that  truth  to  all  men;  and,  in  particular,  to  impart 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         145 

it,  as  speedily  as  possible,  to  any  body  of  men  destined  to  be  as  influential 
on  other  men  as  the  university  community. 

In  the  present  point  it  is  not  ours  to  determine  which  of  the  denomi- 
nations has  most  of  religious  truth  and  largest  ability  to  impart  it.  We  are 
concerned  with  the  principle  that  largest  possession  of  truth  and  of  power 
to  put  others  in  possession  of  it  carries  the  weightiest  responsibility  to  do  the 
service. 

Fourth :  Other  religious  denominations  are  under  obligation  to  take  a 
hand  in  the  religious  culture  of  the  university  community  proportioned  to 
the  truth  of  their  teachings  and  their  ability,  through  holiness  of  life  and 
favoring  Providence,  to  put  their  teachings  across.  This  will  hardly  be 
denied.  It  cannot  be  denied  consistently  by  any  Christian  denomination, 
for  Christ  commissioned  his  disciples  to  evangelize  every  creature  and  to 
disciple  all  nations. 

If  the  foregoing  propositions  be  accepted  as  true,  we  may  properly 
confine  ourselves  to  suggesting  and  discussing  answers  to  the  question : 

How  may  religious  culture  be  given  to  State  university  communities  by 
Denominational  Agencies? 

It  is  conceded  that  this  is  not  the  exact  form  of  the  subject  set  us ;  but 
it  is,  at  the  same  time,  believed  that  an  effectual  plan  by  which  the  Denomi- 
nations can  give  to  the  university  community  religious  culture  is  what  is 
sought  after. 

To  the  present  speaker  the  following  seems  a  practicable  plan:  Let  a 
denomination  conscious  of  the  possession  of  priceless  religious  truth  and 
conscious  of  ability  to  do  such  service,  under  the  good  hand  of  God,  to  the 
university  community,  acquire  a  convenient  plot  of  ground,  erect  on  it  a 
building  containing  an  auditorium,  lecture-rooms,  classrooms,  reading- 
rooms,  a  room  for  a  specially  selected  library  of  the  standard  religious 
literature  of  the  ages — a  building  for  a  church  of  the  institutional  type  in 
short ;  let  it  endow  this  Church  with  such  liberality  that  for  it  can  be  com- 
manded a  man  of  singular  abilities  as  pastor,  preacher  and  lecturer  and 
teacher.  Let  him  have  such  helpers  as  necessity  shall  dictate.  Let  him,  in 
addition  to  preaching  on  the  Lord's  day,  and  looking  after  (as  a  faithful 
pastor)  his  whole  contingent  in  the  university  community,  plan  and  conduct 
a  course  of  study  in  religion  which  shall  be  as  effective  in  disciplining  or 
informing,  or  in  both  disciplining  and  informing,  the  mind,  as  any  course 
of  the  same  number  of  hours  in  the  university  curricula  so  that,  if  the 
university  pleases,  the  successful  completion  of  this  course  may  be  rewarded 
by  a  credit  equalling  that  received  for  any  elective  university  course  of  no 
greater  number  of  hours. 

Such  a  plan,  if  put  into  operation  by  any  given  denomination,  would 
insure  the  pastoral  oversight  of  the  student  and  faculty  members  of  the 


146  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

university  community  of  that  denomination ;  would  secure  preaching  of  the 
type  of  doctrine  peculiar  to  the  denomination.  Those  two  functions,  if  ably 
performed,  would  affect  the  life  of  the  whole  community  to  a  degree.  And 
the  special  course,  taught  with  vigor,  ability  and  learning,  would  produce  a 
more  intense  effect  on  the  class. 

Suppose  four  denominations  had  such  material  plants  established  and 
ably  manned,  the  university  community  would  be  affected  in  no  small 
degree. 

The  university  would  be  made  a  place  of  larger  privilege,  its  cultural 
opportunities  would  be  enlarged  as  by  the  establishment  of  a  new  chair ;  and 
the  character  of  the  whole  body  morally  invigorated  and  ennobled. 

It  should  not  be  difficult  to  secure  plants  and  endowments.  There  must 
be  men,  in  each  of  the  great  denominations  who  would  at  once  see  the  limit- 
less importance  of  bringing  such  influence  to  bear  on  the  university  com- 
munity, and,  through  the  outgoing  students,  upon  the  world — men  ready  to 
establish  just  such  foundations  as  we  have  described. 

Look  them  out,  gentlemen ;  invite  them  to  make  religious  culture  by  the 
denomination  they  love  best  and  respect  most  a  certainty  in  this  city  set  on  a 
hill,  that  the  pathway  of  our  future  leaders  may  be  lighted  not  only  to  true 
greatness  in  this  life  but  to  God  and  blessed  communion  with  Him  in  the  life 
beyond. 

RELIGIOUS  CULTURE  IN  STATE  UNIVERSITIES 
By  Rev.  Byrdine  A.  Abbott,  Editor  The  Christian  Evangelist.  St.  Louis,  Mo. 

The  poet  Tennyson  in  the  first  part  of  his  immortal  elegy  on  the  death  of 
his  college  friend,  Arthur  Hallam,  breathes  a  prayer  which  might  fittingly  be 
used  as  the  daily  litany  of  both  minister  and  teacher,  for  it  states  the  whole 
case  of  the  true  relation  of  learning  and  religion.     He  sings : 

Let  knowledge  grow  from  more  to  more, 

But  more  of  reverence  in  us  dwell ; 

That  mind  and  soul  according  well, 
May  make  one  music  as  before. 

True  religion  includes  real  education  and  genuine  education  must 
eventually  lead  to  true  religion. 

On  the  recent  foundation  of  the  university  for  the  natives  of  South 
Africa  the  Government  declared,  according  to  the  British  Weekly,  that  to 
educate  them  without  religion  would  be  to  raise  up  a  nation  of  devils. 

To  educate  Englishmen,  Frenchmen,  Americans  or  any  other  people 
without  religion  would  produce  the  same  result. 

The  deepest  thinkers  of  our  day  have  come  to  see  the  evils  of  a  purely 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  147 

materialistic  education.  It  makes  the  worid  merely  a  huge  machine  that 
grinds  up  men  and  women,  soul  and  body. 

The  idea  is  brilliantly  expressed  by  Paul  Elmer  More  in  his  latest 
volume  of  the  Shelburne  Essays.     He  says : 

"As  we  contemplate  the  world  converted  into  a  huge  machine  and 
managed  by  engineers,  we  gradually  grow  aware  of  its  lack  of  meaning,  of  its 
emptiness  of  human  value ;  the  soul  is  stifled  in  this  glorification  of  mechani- 
cal efficiency.  And  then  we  begin  to  feel  the  weakness  of  such  a  creed.  .  .  . 
we  discover  its  inability  to  impose  any  restraint  upon  the  passions  of  men  or 
to  supply  any  government  which  can  appeal  to  the  loyalty  of  the  spirit. 
And  seeing  these  things  we  understand  the  fear  that  is  gnawing  at  the  vitals 
of  society." 

A  demon  at  the  wheel  of  the  ship,  or  in  the  cab  of  the  engine,  or  ad- 
mitted into  life  in  the  formative  hours  of  youth  is  scarcely  more  to  be  feared 
than  a  conscienceless  man  in  possession  of  the  secrets  of  chemistry,  electri- 
city, government,  commerce,  or  war,  or  in  charge  of  the  ordinary  machinery 
of  society. 

These  things  have  filled  the  modern  father  and  mother  with  almost  a 
poignant  anxiety  as  they  have  seen  their  sons  and  daughters  go  forth  to  the 
great  universities  with  their  brilliant  and  sometimes  fierce  intellectual  lights. 

This  fear  has  made  it  easy  for  the  ill-informed  and  the  mischief-maker  to 
create  prejudice  and  make  cleavage  between  the  church  and  the  university. 
To  continue  this  and  allow  it  to  grow  would  result  in  calamity  to  civilization. 

It  would  be  possible  to  overcome  this  problem  in  the  independent 
universities  by  ordinary  processes  of  influence,  but  the  State  universities 
present  greater  obstacles,  owing  to  the  separation  of  Church  and  State  in 
this  country.  The  church  college  will  afford  some  relief.  Through  it  the 
student  may  be  so  thoroughly  trained  that  he  will  need  no  special  religious 
opportunity  after  getting  to  the  university.  It  would  be  possible  to  make 
out  a  strong  case  for  the  position  that  a  student  ought  not  to  be  admitted  to 
the  State  university  unless  he  had  had  training  in  a  church  school  of  worthy, 
educational  standards.  Plainly,  however,  this  course  would  be  found 
impracticable  because  the  State  universities  will  always  grow  greater  and 
stronger  and  more  students,  rather  than  fewer,  will  attend  them  directly 
from  the  public  schools. 

It  is  left  to  the  churches,  then,  to  find  a  way  to  follow  their  young  people 
to  the  State  universities  and  throw  about  them  such  influences,  put  before 
them  such  opportunities,  and  lay  upon  them  such  obligations,  that  in  pur- 
suit of  the  knowledge  and  training  requisite  to  their  aims  in  life  they  will  not 
surrender  the  mastership  of  the  soul  nor  abandon  the  conviction  of  the 
reality  and  greatness  of  God  nor  of  the  supreme  value  of  things  eternal. 
But  that  the  student  may  keep  his  spiritual  vantage  ground  the  church  must 


148         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

follow  him  to  the  classroom,  the  campus  and  the  dormitory  of  the  university 
as  far  as  possible. 

It  is  now  twenty-eight  years  since  the  Disciples  of  Christ,  the  body  of 
Christians  with  whom  I  am  identified,  took  definite  steps  to  supply  this 
urgent  demand.  Through  the  Christian  Woman's  Board  of  Missions,  an 
organization  which  recently  became  merged  into  The  United  Christian 
Missionary  Society,  it  was  determined  to  institute  Bible  Chairs  at  such 
universities  as  would  receive  them,  even  if  only  on  toleration  first.  And  it 
may  have  been  that  on  their  first  advent  they  were  very  narrowly  watched. 
They  might  contain  possibilities  of  annoyance  and  a  certain  kind  of  trouble 
even  if  not  of  mischief.  They  might  be  crusaders  of  proselyting,  they  might 
stir  up  friction  between  the  adherents  of  different  denominations,  they  might 
introduce  quite  an  unhealthy  emotionalism  or  at  least  encourage  an  un- 
scientific approach  to  learning  and  to  life.  If  there  was  such  cautionary  bias 
it  was  unnecessary,  for  the  Bible  Chair  at  the  university  has  proved  its  value 
in  many  ways. 

The  Chancellor  of  the  University  of  Kansas  said,  referring  to  one  of 
these  institutions:  "The  Bible  Chair  is  a  real  factor  in  the  religious  life  of 
the  university,  and  I  desire  that  its  influence  increase." 

My  people  are  now  supporting  such  chairs  at  the  State  universities  of 
Michigan,  Texas,  Virginia  and  Kansas.  In  addition  we  have  The  Bible 
College  of  Missouri,  which  is  operated  in  its  own  building  at  the  University 
of  Missotui,  the  "Indiana  School  of  Religion"  at  the  University  of  Indiana, 
the  Eugene  Bible  College  at  the  seat  of  the  University  of  Oregon,  and  at  the 
present  time,  buildings  are  in  course  of  erection  for  the  '  *  California  School  of 
Religion"  in  Los  Angeles,  just  across  the  street  from  the  University  of 
Southern  California.  The  initial  amount  of  money  raised  for  the  "Cali- 
fornia School  of  Christianity"  was  $800,000  which  will  be  quickly  increased 
to  $1,000,000  and  added  to  thereafter  until  the  school  has  satisfactory 
support. 

In  addition  to  these  schools  and  chairs  we  support  student  pastors  at 
Purdue  University,  the  University  of  Illinois  and  the  University  of  Washing- 
ton. It  is  their  duty  especially  to  establish  confidence  and  form  pastoral 
connection  with  our  own  young  people  and  also  to  render  such  Christian 
service  generally  as  may  be  considered  proper  in  the  student  body  at  large. 

These  schools,  Bible  Chairs,  and  pastors  give  fine  opportunity  for  relig- 
ious contact  with,  and  training  of  the  young  people  and  they  are  doing  much 
to  achieve  the  ends  sought  by  their  establishment. 

Of  course  they  are  absolutely  non-sectarian  and  the  Bible  Chairs  and 
schools  do  not  presume  to  offer  courses  of  study  sufficient  in  themselves  to 
equip  men  and  women  for  the  pulpit  or  the  mission  field.  But  they  bear 
witness  to  the  part  religion  must  have  in  a  well-rounded  and  fully  girded  life. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  149 

They  help  to  create  an  atmosphere  which  permeates  the  entire  school  and 
makes  teaching  easier  and  more  delightful.  They  make  a  moral  and 
spiritual  appeal  and,  because  the  big  men  of  the  universities  like  to  have  them 
there,  they  gain  respect  from  even  those  who  do  not  patronize  them.  "The 
Bible  Chair  building  itself  is  a  protest  against  the  scientific  materialism  of 
the  campus,  and  stands  a  silent  but  impressive  reminder  that  there  is  a  God 
of  truth  and  that  all  truth,  both  scientific  and  religious  is  His  truth." 

While  we  do  not  presume  that  other  and  better  ways  of  spiritual 
culture  for  the  young  people  in  the  State  Universities  are  impossible,  we  are 
happy  in  what  has  been  achieved  in  that  respect  and  we  hope  to  increase 
the  value  and  number  of  these  agencies  in  keeping  regnant  the  soul  life  of  the 
students  destined  to  become  the  makers  of  all  the  to-morrows. 


II.  The  Law  Alumni 

THE  LAW  SCHOOL  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 

By  William  Minor  Lile,  LL.B.,  LL.D. 
Dean  of  the  Department  of  Law 

Gentlemen  of  The  Law  School  : 

In  the  University  catalogue  of  1849-50  there  appeared  the  following 
announcement:  "The  year  1850  being  the  twenty-fifth  since  the  organi- 
zation of  the  University,  the  ceremonies,  it  is  expected,  will  be  of  more  than 
common  interest,  and  an  unusually  large  concourse  of  alumni  and  friends  of 
the  institution  will  probably  assemble  on  this  solemn  occasion."  History 
does  not  record  how  solemn  the  occasion  proved  to  be.  But  as  it  occurred 
before  the  adoption  of  the  XVIII  Amendment,  and  during  a  lull  in  the  city 
of  Richmond's  clamor  for  at  least  a  portion  of  the  University,  we  are  entitled 
to  wonder  why  the  catalogue-man  anticipated  an  event  of  such  solemnity. 

Nothing  appears  in  the  program  for  this  Centennial  Year  Hkely  to  lead 
your  thoughts  along  funereal  lines,  unless  it  be  the  announcement  that  you 
are  to  be  addressed,  at  this  solemn  hour  of  three  o'clock,  on  a  sultry  summer 
afternoon,  and  on  a  topic  that  one  would  not  voluntarily  select  for  a  holiday 
diversion.  By  the  time,  therefore,  that  the  present  exercises  are  concluded 
possibly  you  may  agree  that  in  one  feature  at  least  we  have  matched  the 
forecast  of  the  reunion  of  1850. 

The  privilege  of  welcoming  so  large  a  body  of  the  sons  of  the  Law 
School — the  largest  number  ever  assembled  within  our  walls — is  the  most 
grateful  of  the  many  happy  experiences  of  my  twenty-eight  years  of  life  as  a 
law  teacher. 

Responsive  to  the  official  writ,  you  have  come  from  the  seven  seas  and 
all  the  remote  parts  adjacent  thereto — and  on  behalf  of  my  colleagues  and 


150         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

myself  I  bid  you  a  right  royal  welcome.  If  you  will  present  your  writs,  in 
person  or  by  mail,  I  shall  be  glad  to  endorse  a  proper  discharge  thereon. 

Some  of  you  hold  diplomas  antedating  my  own ;  others  were  my  con- 
temporaries in  the  Law  School ;  while  still  others  represent  that  interesting 
interval  when  your  speaker  was  performing,  in  a  neighboring  bailiwick,  those 
marvelous  professional  stunts  with  which  every  student  since  1 893  is  famil- 
iar. But  I  note  with  special  interest,  and  with  a  kindling  heart,  that  the 
larger  number  of  those  before  me  are  my  own  sons  in  the  Law,  to  whom  it 
is  indeed  an  honored  privilege  to  extend  a  father's  greeting. 

No  daughters  have  as  yet  graced  the  family  circle,  but  they  are  well  on 
the  way,  and  perhaps  our  next  family  reunion  will  be  graced  by  many  sisters 
and  daughters — fair  Portias,  "fresh  from  brawling  courts  and  dusty  purlieus 
of  the  law." 

The  lives  of  the  law  teacher  and  the  practitioner,  are  in  strong  contrast. 
The  essential  qualities  and  aims  of  the  two,  in  some  respects  similar,  are,  on 
the  whole,  widely  different.  The  practitioner  spends  most  of  his  life  as  a 
partisan,  in  the  endeavor,  not  to  ascertain  what  sound  principle  is  applicable 
to  a  given  state  of  facts,  with  the  reason  upon  which  it  rests,  but  by  astute 
argument  to  qualify  or  distinguish  the  basic  principle  to  suit  some  special 
case  in  hand.  He  has  studied  disconnected  propositions  of  a  particular 
topic  as  applicable  to  some  narrow  state  of  facts,  rather  than  the  field  of  the 
topic  in  its  entirety,  or  with  attention  to  the  relation  of  one  branch  of  it  with 
another.  He  conceives  of  the  law  not  so  much  as  a  science  as  a  collection  of 
isolated  rules ;  and  he  has  less  concern  whether  his  contentions  be  sound  or 
unsound  than  whether  he  can  establish  them  in  a  given  case. 

The  teacher,  on  the  other  hand,  must  work  out  his  subject  in  its  entirety 
and  with  judicial  poise  reach  his  conclusions  regardless  of  consequences. 
He  must  seek  the  truth  and  that  only.  He  does  not  deal  with  concrete  facts, 
nor  with  living  personalities.  John  Doe  and  Richard  Roe  constitute  his 
clientele,  and  Blackacre  and  Whiteacre  his  horizon.  For  him  the  fine  points 
must  give  away  to  broad  and  basic  principles — and  kindred  but  disjointed 
propositions  must  be  brought  together  and  correlated.  Day  after  day  he 
speaks  to  the  same  uncritical,  and  often  uncaring,  audience,  on  the  same 
subject — to  be  repeated  year  after  year,  with  a  new  but  equally  apathetic 
assembly.  The  teacher  participates  in  no  warm  contests  on  the  hustings  or 
at  the  bar.  For  him  there  is  no  gaudium  certaminis.  He  wins  no  victories 
to  kindle  his  enthusiasm,  and  loses  no  cases  to  teach  him  his  errors.  His 
compensation  is  the  same  whether  he  works  or  plays.  And  to  whatever 
heights  he  may  attain  in  his  profession,  the  stipend  of  his  earlier  days,  piti- 
ful enough  even  at  that  stage  of  his  career,  tends  to  remain  as  static  as  the 
countenance  of  the  Sphinx.     One  annual  joy,  however,  is  his-7-he  is  able  to 


The  Rector  and  Visitors,  the  President,  the  Dean  and 
Members  of  the  Faculty  of  the 

JJaw  School  of  the  CTniversity  of  TJirginia 

to  their  Right  Liege  and  Beloved  Son 

of  the  good of in  the  State  of 

COMMAND  you  that  on  the  31st  day  of  May  next,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord, 
1921,  and  of  our  Foundation  the  102nd,  you  shall  enter  your  appearance,  in  pro- 
pria persona,  et  non  per  alium,  at  our  Seat  at  Charlottesville,  there  to  remain, 
couchant  and  levant,  for  the  Three  Days  thence  ensuing,  and  then  and  there  to 
do  and  receive  such  things  as  may  be  commanded  you. 

And  ESPECIALLY:  Then  and  there  to  assist,  by  your  corporal  presence  and  personal  endeavors 
in  the  celebration  of  the 

Oentennjal  ^nnibergarp 

of  the  Founding  of  our  University  and  Law  School  and  in  doing  proper  and  bounden  auncestral 
Homage  as  a  liege  Son  and  Subject; 

And  FURTHER:  To  partake  in  such  Masks  and  Madrigals,  Plays,  Tourneys,  Jousts,  Feats  of  Arms 
and  Archery,  Falconry.Wrestling,  Bowls,  Quoits,  Quarter-staff  and  Single-stick;  Feastings  of  Pasties, 
Comfits,  Junkets,  Cates,  Stikes  of  Eels,  Creels  of  Carp,  Venison  Pies,  Boiled  Capons,  Pots  of  Honey, 
Horns  of  Sack,  Cups  of  Wassail,  and  such  other  Diversions  and  Refections,  spiritual  and  physical, 
as  may  then  and  there  lawfully  be  provided  by  our  heralds,  pursuivants  and  serving-men,  to  make 
merry  our  right  leal  Sons,  and  to  do  Honor  to  Our  Centennial  Anniversary  aforesaid; 

And  FURTHER:  Then  and  there  to  meet  and  greet,  with  right  good  will,  other  homagers  who  have 
been  summoned  by  Like  Summons,  and  who  will  gather  at  our  said  Seat  from  the  Seven  Seas  and 
all  Remote  Parts  bordering  thereon  or  adjacent  thereto; 

HND  THIS  YOU  WILL  DO  AND  PERFORM,  without  Delay  or  Plea,  and  no  other  Essoin 
shall  cast,  than  as  foUoweth,  and  then  only  by  two  good  Essoiners,  videlicet:  Essoin  of  De 
Ultra  Mare;  De  Infirmitate Veniendi ;  De  Esse  in  Peregrinatione;  Per  Servitium  Reipublicae;  Per 
InundationemViae;  In  Curia  Instanter;  De  Expectando  Filio(aut  Filia)  in  Praesenti;  in  Custodia 
Legis;  In  Coelo. 

ND  THIS  YOU  WILL  IN  NO  WISE  OMIT.  Sub  Poena  De  Contemptu  Brevium,  De 
Recreantisa,  De  Utlagatoque. 


H 


'r\07<iE  at  Minor  Hall,  sealed  with  our  Corporate 
■*-^  Seal,  and  made  sure  by  the  sign-manuals  follow 
ing,  on  this  the  4th  day  of  April,  Anno  Domini  1921, 
and  of  our  Founding  the  102nd. 


For  the  Faculty  »  Laige 


For  the  Ficulty  of  Law: 


A  Writ  of  Summons 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  151 

twirl  his  thumbs  in  defiance  of  the  income  tax  collector,  and  he  hoards  no 
surplus  wealth  to  tempt  him  to  invest  in  forbidden  commodities.  He  leads 
a  sort  of  monastic  existence,  apart  from  the  madding  crowd.  The  news- 
papers do  not  report  his  lectures,  howsoever  learned — or  howsoever  illu- 
mined by  recitals  of  his  own  prowess  at  the  bar,  or  by  anecdotes,  culled  from 
his  well-thumbed  repertory. 

The  consequence  is,  that  the  law  teacher  finds  that  his  most  difficult 
task  is  the  maintenance  of  that  enthusiasm  for  his  work,  without  which  he 
is  a  mere  wooden  man  on  the  rostrum.  A  burning  zeal  is  the  one  essential 
of  the  teacher  as  it  is  of  the  advocate.  But  the  keen  enthusiasm  of  the  latter 
needs  no  conscious  effort  to  quicken  or  sustain  it.  The  flame  of  his  passion 
keeps  pace  with  his  professional  growth,  and  is  the  natural  outcome  of  his 
daily  routine.  On  the  other  hand,  from  causes  mentioned,  it  is  only  by  con- 
stant and  persistent  effort  of  his  own,  with  rare  aid  from  without,  that  the 
teacher  may  hope  to  emulate  the  zeal  that  inspires  his  brothers  of  the  bar. 
He  may  not  enthuse  to-day  and  brood  to-morrow.  Six  days  out  of  the  seven 
he  must  stand  upon  his  retired  rostrum,  aloof  from  his  fellows,  and  do  his 
task  with  a  glad  heart  and  a  joyous  countenance. 

If  this  comparison  has  created  the  impression  on  your  minds  that  my 
colleagues  and  I  are  unhappy  in  our  roles,  and  are  disposed  to  complain  of 
our  tasks,  you  have  misunderstood  me.  On  the  contrary,  not  one  of  us  would 
exchange  places  with  you;  for  in  the  quiet  of  our  academic  shades  we  find 
much  to  compensate  us,  and  to  teach  us  that  even  the  life  of  a  law  professor 
is  well  worth  the  living.  Our  interest  in  and  close  association  with  the  fine 
body  of  youth  that  with  each  recurrent  season  gathers  within  our  walls — 
in  my  opinion  the  finest  assembly  of  young  American  manhood  to  be  found 
in  the  college  world — blinds  us  to  the  truth  that  our  tethers  are  limited  and 
grow  shorter  with  the  passing  years,  and  depicts  life  to  us  in  somewhat  the 
same  roseate  hue  as  our  young  scholars  see  it. 

Nor  must  you  alumni  of  the  Law  School  forget  that  howsoever  high 
the  places  you  occupy  at  the  bar  or  on  the  bench,  in  the  depths  of  our  own 
hearts  we  claim  something  of  the  credit.  You  and  the  best  of  you  are  but 
our  creations !  No — we  have  not  grown  weary  of  our  tasks,  and  an  army 
with  banners  could  scarcely  drive  us  from  our  places ! 

I  have  thus  momentarily  drawn  aside  the  curtain,  and  given  you  a 
glance  at  the  inner  life  of  the  law  teacher.  This,  for  the  possible  interest 
that  you  might  find  in  this  glimpse  of  precincts  removed  from  common  ob- 
servation, but  chiefly  that  you  might  understand  the  depth  of  the  welcome 
already  extended  to  you.  You  cannot  know  what  a  delight — what  a  genuine 
inspiration —  it  is  to  us  to  greet  you  here,  at  any  time,  singly  or  in  groups,  but 


152  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

especially  on  this  our  Centennial  Anniversary.  You  could  not  know,  except 
from  my  telling  of  it,  how  hard  it  is  for  us  to  keep  our  enthusiasm  alive. 
Your  presence  here — this  renewed  intercourse  after  the  lapse  of  the  years — 
your  gracious  greetings — the  records  that  you  have  made  as  sons  of  the  Law 
School,  standing  out  in  plainer  colors  now  that  we  see  you  face  to  face — 
have  given  to  each  of  us  of  the  teaching  staff  a  new  spirit  for  our  duties,  and 
a  renewed  ambition  to  deserve  our  places  as  teachers  in  the  Law  School, 
and  to  justify  your  continued  confidence. 

It  has  seemed  to  me  that  it  might  not  be  inappropriate  on  an  occasion 
such  as  this,  which  comes  but  once  in  a  hundred  years,  briefly  to  rehearse  to 
you  something  of  the  history  of  the  Law  School,  with  very  cursory  mention 
of  those  faithful  men  who,  standing  in  our  places,  gave  of  their  strength  for 
its  upbuilding,  and  directed  its  policies  in  the  earlier  days. 

It  has  been  well  said  that  institutions  are  the  antitheses  of  men  who 
erect  them.  The  former,  properly  nourished,  escape  the  infirmities  of  age, 
and  grow  stronger  as  their  years  increase.  Such  has  been  the  history  of  the 
Law  School.  At  the  close  of  its  century  of  life,  it  finds  itself  the  fruitful 
mother  of  many  devoted  sons — their  numbers  increasing  with  the  passing 
of  the  years,  and  her  powers  of  reproducing  and  nourishing  her  offspring 
responding  to  the  ever  increasing  demand. 

Though  the  charter  of  the  University  was  granted  in  1819,  it  was  not 
until  1 826  that  the  Law  School  was  opened  to  students.  At  this  period  there 
were  few  law  schools  in  the  country,  and  few  or  none  had  attracted  many 
students  to  their  halls,  or  gained  the  confidence  of  the  legal  profession  in 
their  methods  and  results.  "Reading  law"  in  the  office  of  an  experienced 
practitioner  was  thought  a  more  beneficial  course  of  preparation  for  the  bar 
than  that  offered  by  the  law  school.  The  law  office,  rather  than  the  law 
school,  was,  therefore,  the  center  of  legal  education.  Nor  was  there  any 
American  precedent  for  a  law  school  erected,  supported  and  governed  by  the 
State. 

Mr.  Jefferson  himself  had  received  his  legal  training  under  Chancellor 
Wythe,  next  to  Marshall  the  most  distinguished  jurist  that  Virginia,  or 
indeed,  America,  had  then,  or  has  since,  produced.  Our  Founder  had  also, 
as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Visitors  of  William  and  Mary,  had  a  part  in 
establishing  the  law  school  of  William  and  Mary  with  Chancellor  Wythe  as 
professor,  and  therefore  appreciated  the  value  of  a  law  school  training. 

It  may  be  assumed  that  his  main  purpose  in  establishing  a  chair  of  law 
in  the  State  University  was  to  afford  facilities  for  legal  training,  superior  to 
the  office  method.  But  it  was  in  keeping  with  Mr.  Jefferson's  character  and 
temperament  to  hope  that  through  the  instrumentality  of  the  Law  School,  in 
addition  to  the  technical  training  of  candidates  for  the  bar,  a  sound  (i.  e., 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  153 

a  Jeffersonian)  political  philosophy  might  be  disseminated  among  the  rising 
generation  of  the  South.  Thus  we  find  him  writing  to  James  Madison,  in 
February,  1826: 

"In  the  selection  of  our  Law  Professor, "  he  writes,  "we  must  be  rigor- 
ously attentive  to  his  political  principles.  You  will  recollect  that 
before  the  Revolution,  Coke- Littleton  was  the  universal  elementary 
book  of  law  students ;  and  a  sounder  Whig  never  wrote,  nor  of  pro- 
founder  learning  in  the  orthodox  doctrines  of  the  British  Constitu- 
tion, or  in  what  were  called  English  liberties.  You  remember  also 
that  our  lawyers  were  then  all  Whigs.  But  when  his  black-letter 
text,  and  uncouth  but  cunning  learning  got  out  of  fashion,  and  the 
honeyed  Mansfieldism  of  Blackstone  became  the  students'  law  book, 
from  that  moment  that  profession  (the  nursery  of  our  Congress) 
began  to  slide  into  Toryism,  and  nearly  all  the  young  brood  of  law- 
yers now  are  of  that  line.  They  suppose  themselves,  indeed,  to  be 
Whigs,  because  they  no  longer  know  what  Whiggism  or  republican- 
ism means.  It  is  in  our  seminary  that  that  vestal  flame  is  to  be  kept 
alive ;  it  is  thence  that  it  is  to  be  spread  anew  over  our  own  and  the 
sister  States." 

How  far  short  of  the  Founder's  hope,  as  thus  expressed,  the  Law  School 
fell,  may  be  inferred  from  the  circumstance  that  Robert  Toombs,  of  Georgia, 
and  Henry  Winter  Davis,  of  Maryland,  were  both  its  products. 

The  first  professor  of  law  was  John  Tayloe  Lomax,  of  Fredericksburg — 
Francis  Walker  Gilmer,  originally  chosen,  having  been  prevented  by  ill 
health,  followed  shortly  afterwards  by  death,  from  entering  upon  the  duties 
of  the  chair.  After  Gilmer's  death,  the  position,  along  with  the  presidency 
of  the  University,  was  offered  to  William  Wirt,  but  the  offer  was  declined. 
The  course  covered  but  a  single  year.  The  textbooks  used  were  (Mr. 
Jefferson's  advice  notwithstanding)  Blackstone's  Commentaries;  Cruise's 
Law  of  Real  Property ;  Selwyn's  Abstract  of  the  Law  of  Nisi  Prius ;  and  Mad- 
dock's  Chancery. 

The  complaint  of  insufficient  salaries  at  the  University,  now  so  vocifer- 
ous, appears  to  be  but  a  prolonged  echo  from  those  early  days — as  Lomax 
resigned  after  four  years  of  cultivating  the  law  "on  a  little  oatmeal,"  to 
accept  a  circuit  judgeship,  which  offered  a  larger  compensation.  To  those 
familiar  with  the  history  of  the  salaries  of  circuit  judges  in  Virginia,  res  ipsa 
loquitur. 

Lomax  was  succeeded  in  1830  by  John  A.  G.  Davis,  grandfather  of 
John  Staige  Davis  now  of  the  Medical  Faculty.  Professor  Davis  held  the 
chair  until  1840,  when  he  was  killed  by  a  riotous  student.  For  the  single 
year  following,  the  chair  was  filled  by  the  temporary  appointment  of  N.  P. 
Howard.    In  1841 ,  Henry  St.  George  Tucker,  who  had  been  President  of  the 


154         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Virginia  Court  of  Appeals,  a  position  which  he  had  filled  with  singular  dis- 
tinction, was  appointed  as  Davis's  successor — resigning  from  ill  health,  four 
years  later.  In  this  brief  period,  however,  he  left  the  indelible  impress  of  his 
genius,  and  builded  better  than  he  knew,  in  establishing  the  Honor  System, 
of  which  he  was  the  moving  spirit — the  most  splendid  inheritance  that  Vir- 
ginia's University  possesses  to-day.  Tucker  was  succeeded  by  John  B. 
Minor,  whose  remarkable  career,  as  teacher  and  author,  is  familiar  not  only 
to  hundreds  of  those  still  living  who  had  the  good  fortune  to  sit  at  his  feet, 
but  to  the  present  generation  of  lawyers  throughout  the  country. 

Professor  Minor  held  the  chair  for  fifty  years — 1 845-1 895 — and  gave  a 
prestige  to  the  Law  School  which  made  it  nationally  famous.  The  tone  with 
which  he  endowed  it,  the  standards  that  he  set  for  it,  the  devoted  spirit  that 
he  exemplified  toward  it,  have  been  the  inspiration  and  the  goal  of  his  suc- 
cessors. 

In  1 85 1,  the  Department  of  Law,  then  known  as  the  "School "  of  Law — 
in  accordance  with  the  then  general  plan  of  designating  each  of  the  several 
subjects  in  the  University  curriculum  as  a  "school" — was  divided  into  two 
schools,  a  second  chair  was  created,  and  James  P.  Holcombe  became  adjunct 
professor — promoted  to  full  professor  in  1854.  Holcombe  resigned  in  1861, 
on  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War,  to  become  a  member  of  the  Confederate 
Congress.  After  the  Civil  War,  Stephen  O.  Southall  succeeded  to  Hol- 
combe's  chair,  and  on  his  death  in  1883,  James  H.  Gilmore  was  named  as 
his  successor,  resigning  in  1897. 

In  1893,  chiefly  with  the  purpose  of  relieving  Professor  Minor  of  the 
heavy  burden  which  for  50  years  he  had  borne  with  never-flagging  zeal  and 
tenacity,  but  which  had  become  too  onerous  for  his  advanced  years,  William 
Minor  Lile  was  added  to  the  teaching  staff  as  a  full  professor,  and  the  work 
of  the  law  school  was  equally  divided  among  these  three — Minor,  Gilmore 
and  Lile.  The  work  assigned  to  the  new  incumbent  was  taken  in  equal 
proportions  from  that  of  the  two  existing  chairs.  This  division  left  Pro- 
fessor Minor  with  but  two  subjects.  Real  Property  and  Pleading  and  Prac- 
tice at  Law  (volumes  II  and  IV  of  his  famous  Institutes).  To  ease  this 
burden,  still  further,  his  son,  now  Professor  Raleigh  Colston  Minor,  was 
named  as  his  Assistant.  The  son  took  over  the  Pleading  and  Practice,  leav- 
ing to  Professor  Minor,  for  the  last  two  years  of  his  life,  the  single  subject 
of  Real  Property,  with  two  lecture  periods  a  week.  Those  who  remember 
the  strong  will  and  self-sacrificing  spirit  of  the  great  teacher,  need  not  be 
told  that  this  effort  to  ease  his  latter  days  was  not  without  passionate  pro- 
test from  him. 

Following  Professor  Minor's  death,  in  1895,  Walter  D.  Dabney  was 
appointed  full  professor,  with  Professor  Raleigh  C.  Minor  as  Adjunct, — 
Professor  Dabney  succeeding  to  the  course  in  Pleading  and  Practice,  and 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  155 

Adjunct  Professor  Minor  to  that  in  Real  Property — and  to  these  two  were 
assigned  other  courses  added  to  the  curriculum  in  1895,  coincident  with  the 
extension  of  the  course  from  one  to  two  years. 

On  Professor  Dabney's  untimely  death  in  1899,  Professor  Charles  A. 
Graves,  of  Washington  and  Lee  University,  was  appointed  his  successor. 

The  inception  of  the  three  years'  course,  in  1909-10,  called  for  an  enlarge- 
ment of  the  teaching  staff — now  composed  of  Professors  Lile,  Graves,  Minor, 
Armistead  M.  Dobie  and  George  B.  Eager,  both  of  the  latter  graduates  of 
the  Law  School. 

The  appointment  of  Edwin  A.  Alderman  as  first  President  of  the  Uni- 
versity, in  1904,  was  followed  by  a  complete  reorganization  of  the  several 
departments,  and  the  erection  of  minor  faculties — each  department  presided 
over  by  a  dean.  This  office  in  the  Law  School  has  been  held  by  Professor 
Lile  since  that  date. 

The  session  of  1826  opened  with  26  students.  The  average  attendance 
down  to  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  was  approximately  60.  During  the 
four  years  of  the  Civil  War,  31  students  were  enrolled.  For  the  period  be- 
tween the  close  of  the  Civil  War  and  1895,  the  approximate  average  per 
session  was  no.  Since  then,  the  enrollment  has  steadily  increased  year  by 
year.  For  the  present  session,  the  number  of  matriculates  is  310,  from  30 
states. 

Originally  there  were  no  prescribed  entrance  requirements,  and  the 
minimum  age  for  admission  of  students  to  any  department  of  the  University 
was  sixteen  years.  While  graduation  in  Law  was  provided  for,  no  degree 
appears  to  have  been  offered  until  1842,  during  the  regime  of  Professor 
Tucker.  From  1842- 1865,  the  catalogue  designates  the  title  of  the  degree 
as  Bachelor  of  "Laws";  but,  beginning  with  1865,  the  term  Bachelor  of 
"Law"  appears; — the  plural  designation  re-appeared  in  1905,  and  is  still 
retained.  It  was  also  during  Professor  Tucker's  incumbency  that  a  short- 
lived statute,  admitting  graduates  of  the  Law  School  to  practice  without  the 
necessity  of  a  license  from  the  judges,  was  enacted.  This  statute  was  re- 
pealed in  the  Code  Revisal  of  1849.  Tradition  accredits  the  repeal  to  the 
insistence  of  Professor  Minor,  who  preferred  that  his  students  should  pass 
the  same  examination  for  admission  to  the  bar  as  was  required  of  other 
candidates.  The  wisdom  of  this  policy  has  been  vindicated  by  its  quite 
general  acceptance  by  the  profession,  and  particularly  by  the  standard  law 
schools  of  the  country.  Knowledge  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  that  the 
results  of  his  instruction  are  to  be  submitted  to  the  acid  test  of  the  bar 
examiners,  who  are  in  daily  touch  with  the  law  in  its  most  concrete  form,  is  a 
manifest  incentive  to  the  teacher,  and  a  safeguard  against  loose  pedagogical 
methods  and  practices. 


156         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

The  important  part  that  the  Law  School  has  played  in  the  University 
itself  is  indicated  in  the  circumstance  that  out  of  5571  degrees  conferred  by 
all  the  departments  since  organization,  2051  have  been  degrees  from  the 
Law  School — or  37%  of  the  total. 

The  Law  School  has  never  been,  like  the  average  state  law  school,  a 
merely  local  one,  for  the  production  of  local  lawyers — but  from  earHest  days 
has  drawn  its  patronage  from  all  parts  of  the  United  States.  It  has  edu- 
cated thousands  of  young  men  for  the  legal  profession.  The  very  large 
number  of  these  who  have  occupied  the  highest  places  in  the  states  and 
nation,  has  illustrated  the  fine  quality  of  the  spirit  that  the  School  inspires, 
and  the  soundness  of  the  instruction  that  it  affords. 

When  the  information  first  came  to  your  ears  a  year  ago  that  we  were 
preparing  to  open  the  doors  of  Jefferson's  masculine  University  to  women — 
and  admitting  them  even  within  the  sacred  precincts  of  the  Law  School — 
you  doubtless  wondered  why,  and  recorded  your  mental,  if  not  written, 
protest.  But  it  has  been  done — not  because  we  of  the  Law  School  believed 
the  law  a  fit  profession  for  the  mothers  of  the  coming  generations,  but  for 
the  same  reason  that  the  gods  gave  the  frogs  a  king — they  clamored  (I  dare 
not  say  croaked)  for  it  so  vociferously.  Voters  as  they  now  are  (the  women, 
not  the  frogs),  their  insistence  and  persistence — their  crying  aloud  night  and 
day  without  sin-cease — their  strident  threats  of  forcing  their  way  in  by  the 
legislative  door,  and  therefore  on  their  own  terms — convinced  us  that  dis- 
cretion was  the  better  part  of  valor.  We  surrendered  on  very  honorable 
terms,  magnanimously  dictated  by  ourselves.  These  terms  are  that  the 
woman  applicant  for  admission  to  the  law  school  shall  be  twenty  years  of  age, 
and  the  holder  of  a  baccalaureate  degree — or  else  twenty-two  years  of  age  and 
having  completed  two  years  of  standard  college  work.  These  requirements 
are  thought  sufficient  to  secure  proper  maturity  of  mind  and  manners,  and 
the  desired  seriousness  of  purpose — and  to  exclude  the  airyfairy  LiHans  as 
a  disturbing  element  in  our  peculiarly  and  traditionally  virile  surroundings. 

Those  of  you  whose  college  careers  antedate  modern  entrance  require- 
ments, may  be  interested  in  the  announcement  that,  at  present,  candidates 
for  admission  to  the  Law  School  must  have  completed  one  year  of  college 
work,  in  addition  to  graduation  from  a  high  school — and  that  with  the 
session  of  1922-1923,  an  additional  year  of  college  work  will  be  required. 
This  may  mean  that  in  the  course  of  a  few  years  the  entrance  standard  will 
be  raised  to  the  requirement  of  a  baccalaureate  degree.  The  existing  en- 
trance requirements  at  Virginia  are  considerably  short  of  the  standard 
exacted  by  the  best  professional  and  pedagogical  thought  of  the  country, 
and  we  are  already  lagging  behind  most  of  the  standard  law  schools  in  this 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  i57 

respect.  A  number  of  these  already  require  a  baccalaureate  degree  or  its 
equivalent.  My  own  experience  of  twenty-eight  years  as  a  law  teacher 
convinces  me  that  in  keeping  down  our  entrance  standards  at  Virginia,  we 
have  unwittingly  done  great  injustice  to  the  youth  of  the  South,  and  through 
them  to  the  legal  profession.  My  observation  is  that  the  average  youth 
contemplating  the  study  of  law,  or  of  any  other  profession,  will  be  content  to 
enter  upon  his  professional  studies  with  the  minimum  of  preparation  re- 
quired by  the  school  of  his  choice.  He  is  not  to  blame  for  assuming  that 
the  wise  heads  who  admit  him  to  the  Law  School  with  merely  a  high  school 
preparation,  are  expressing  to  him  the  opinion  that  no  further  preparation  is 
necesary  to  fit  him  for  a  distinguished  career  at  the  bar.  The  result  in  our 
own  Law  School  has  been  disastrous.  Unfledged  youths,  fresh  from  the 
high  schools,  the  parents  of  many  of  whom  were  abundantly  able  to  finance 
them  through  a  complete  academical  and  professional  coiu"se,  have  rushed 
into  the  Law  School,  with  their  professional  ambitions  as  immature  as  their 
high  school  minds.  The  result  has  been  a  veritable  slaughter  of  the  inno- 
cents. Under  such  standards,  an  entering  class  of  loo  would  produce  a 
graduating  class  of  approximately  30  or  40 — with  the  majority  of  these 
made  up  of  men  with  college  training. 

Our  medical  friends  have  far  outstripped  us,  in  spite  of  our  aristocratic 
scorn  of  them  as  parvenus  in  the  professional  field.  As  lawyers,  we  trace  our 
ancestry  back  a  thousand  years — whereas,  as  a  scientific  profession,  this  new 
rival  was  born  within  the  recollection  of  some  of  us  who  are  not  old  men. 
Forty  years  ago  in  Virginia,  any  quack  might  call  himself  doctor,  and  serve 
all  patients  rash  enough  to  employ  him — and  this  without  let  or  hindrance 
from  the  State.  But,  led  by  the  well -educated  members  of  their  profession, 
their  standards  have  already  been  raised  to  a  point  which  we  lawyers  of 
Virginia  can  scarcely  hope  to  reach  in  a  generation.  The  result  has  been  that 
medicine  and  surgery  have  made  greater  advances  in  the  last  forty  years 
than  in  all  the  preceding  ages. 

I  cannot  refrain  from  taking  this  opportunity  of  reminding  you  that 
one  of  the  chief  reasons  why  legal  standards  have  lagged,  is  due  to  the 
lawyers  themselves — who,  as  pointed  out  recently  by  the  Carnegie  Founda- 
tion, and  as  known  to  every  observant  lawyer  who  has  attended  sessions  of 
our  legislatiu-es  and  meetings  of  bar  associations — lose  no  opportunity  of 
blocking  efforts  within  the  profession  to  raise  legal  standards.  "Look  at 
me,"  exclaim  these  blind  guides,  "and  think  what  the  State  would  have 
lost  had  your  high  standards  excluded  me  from  the  Law  School,  and  from 
the  bar  of  which  I  am  such  a  shining  ornament." 

Perhaps  a  word  about  our  teaching  methods  may  not  be  out  of  place. 
We  still  use  the  old  fashioned  text-book  and  lecture  system,  supplemented 


158         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

by  the  use  of  illustrative  cases.  With  most  of  the  other  law  schools  of  the 
country  now  thoroughly  wedded  to  the  so-called  Case  System,  we  find  our- 
selves almost  in  a  class  to  ourselves.  We  are  thought  of,  and  not  infre- 
quently referred  to  by  our  contemporaries,  as  old-fogyish,  and  out  of  date. 
But  we  have  held  to  our  own  methods — not  from  ignorance  of  the  virtues 
of  the  other  system,  but  from  deliberate  choice .  .  The  argument  in  favor  of 
the  one  or  the  other  system  is  too  long  to  be  presented  here  at  length,  even 
on  the  assumption  that  you  would  be  interested  in  following  it.  I  think  it 
may  be  summed  up  in  the  statement  that  the  main  purpose  of  the  Case 
System,  as  its  disciples  confess,  is  not  so  much  to  teach  legal  principles,  as  to 
cultivate  the  student's  reasoning  faculties — surely  a  most  desirable  end. 
Under  this  method  the  lecture  room  is  converted  into  a  sort  of  debating 
society,  of  which  the  instructor  is  the  leader  and  interlocutor.  A  half-dozen 
or  more  cases,  previously  assigned,  constitute  the  basis  of  the  debate.  The 
whole  hour  is  not  infrequently  consumed  in  the  discussion  of  a  single  point, 
or  of  a  single  case  from  the  assignment.  Normally,  the  assigned  cases  not 
reached  during  the  hour  are  passed  over,  a  new  assignment  is  made,  and  a 
new  debate  held  at  the  next  period — the  student  being  left  to  work  up  the 
ignored  cases  as  best  he  may.  It  is  heresy  to  limit  a  lively  debate  in  the 
interest  of  economy  of  time.  The  point  or  points  actually  discussed  are 
thus  thoroughly  ventilated  and  impressed  upon  the  student — or  upon  such 
of  them  as  participate  in  the  debate,  or  take  accurate  notes  thereof.  An 
entire  lecture  period  may  thus  be  devoted  to  the  discussion  of  Benjamin 
Butler's  famous  point  whether  the  key  to  a  man's  shop  is  personalty  or  realty 
and  therefore  the  subject  or  not  the  subject  of  larceny — or  the  distinction 
between  a  demurrer  to  the  declaration  and  a  demurrer  to  the  evidence.  The 
natural  tendency  of  the  system  is  to  develop  a  race  of  case  lawyers.  But  the 
most  serious  objection  is  the  slowness  with  which  the  course  goes  forward, 
and  the  gaps  that  the  method  must  leave  in  the  continuity  and  complete- 
ness of  the  topics  pursued.  If  the  student  had  six  years  to  devote  to  his  law 
school  course,  instead  of  three,  the  case  method  might  prove  ideal. 

Our  theory  is  that  a  large  part  of  the  body  of  the  law  rests  upon  no 
particular  reason,  but  is  conventional,  or  may  we  not  call  it  arbitrary? 
This  cannot  be  deduced  by  any  course  of  reasoning  howsoever  subtle  or 
astute.  The  mere  statement  of  the  rule,  with  a  practical  illustration,  is  its 
best  exposition.  One  need  not  read  an  opinion  of  several  pages  to  learn  that 
a  contract  must  have  a  valuable  consideration,  or  that  the  agreement  must 
be  mutual;  or  that  an  infant  is  not  bound  by  his  general  contracts,  but 
ordinarily  is  liable  for  his  torts ;  or  that  an  indorser's  liability  is  conditioned 
on  the  taking  of  the  proper  steps  on  dishonor  of  the  paper;  or  that  a  cor- 
poration cannot  lawfully  exercise  a  power  not  conferred  by  its  charter;  or 
that  the  plea  of  the  statute  of  limitations,  or  the  statute  of  parol  agreements, 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  i59 

is  personal  to  the  defendant.  These  illustrations  might  be  indefinitely 
multiplied.  And  considering  the  law  of  procedure,  whether  under  the 
written  or  the  unwritten  law,  substantially  the  whole  of  it  consists  of  con- 
ventional rules,  which  are  to  be  mastered  only  by  memorizing  them. 

These  considerations,  with  the  further  consideration  that  the  student's 
time  in  the  law  school  is  limited,  and  that  under  our  old-fashioned  methods 
the  student  obtains  a  complete  bird's  eye  view  of  the  fundamentals  of  each 
of  his  topics — succinctly  stated  and  generally  illustrated  by  the  text  itself, 
and  by  the  case-book,  and  always  by  the  instructor  himself — make  us 
content  with  our  own  methods.  Under  our  method  the  subject  is  presented 
as  a  consistent  whole,  an  impossible  desideratum  under  the  other  system. 
Where  reasons  exist,  and  serve  to  assist  the  student's  understanding,  they 
are  properl}'-  stressed, — indeed,  these  are  more  apt  to  be  found  in  the  text- 
book than  in  the  opinions.  But  equal  stress  is  laid  upon  the  student's  ac- 
quisition of  fundamental  principles  for  their  intrinsic  value,  and  upon  his 
remembering  them  just  as  he  must  learn  and  remember  the  letters  of  the 
alphabet  or  the  rules  of  Latin  syntax. 

The  conclusions  reached  from  our  theoretical  study  of  the  two  methods, 
seem  to  us  abundantly  sustained  by  the  results.  The  reasoning  qualities 
of  our  graduates  are  thoroughly  well  developed,  though  possibly  not  quite  so 
highly  as  under  the  other  system.  Our  men  go  out  into  the  profession  not 
only  with  excellent  reasoning  powers,  but  fully  equipped  with  a  knowledge 
of  fundamental  legal  principles.  The  further  cultivation  of  their  reasoning 
powers,  and  their  alertness  and  resourcefulness  in  debate,  may  well  be  post- 
poned to  the  succeeding  thirty  or  forty  years  to  be  spent  in  the  forensic 
contests  at  the  bar.  The  high  positions  taken  by  our  graduates  throughout 
the  country  satisfies  us  that  our  Law  School,  however  old-fashioned  or  con- 
servative in  its  methods,  is  accomplishing  the  purpose  for  which  it  exists — 
to  supply  the  bar  and  public  stations  with  accomplished,  well-rounded,  high- 
minded  and  efficient  lawyers. 

I  hope  that  this  brief  summary  of  our  teaching  methods  and  their  re- 
sults may  convince  you  that  the  University  of  Virginia  has  followed  along 
its  own  lines,  in  spite  of  the  new  cult  of  the  case  system,  not  ignorantly,  nor 
capriciously,  but  for  reasons  quite  satisfactory  to  those  of  us  charged  with 
the  responsible  duty  of  maintaining  its  standards  and  its  prestige. 

THE  PLAN  AND  HISTORY  OF  THE  VIRGINIA  LAW  REVIEW 
By  Randolph  Caskie  Coleman,  '21,  M.A.,  Editor 

Mr.  Chairman,  Alumni  of  the  Law  School,  and  Visitors: 

It  was  intended,  as  appears  on  the  program,  that  I  should  make  you  a 
speech  on  the  Virginia  Law  Review,  but  after  the  splendid  address  of  Dean 


i6o         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Lile,  I  feel  that  any  attempt  at  a  speech  on  my  part  would  be  feeble  indeed. 
So  I  am  going  to  tell  you  very  simply  and  briefly  a  few  things  about  the  law 
journal  published  by  the  students. 

On  March  5,  1913  an  informal  meeting  was  held  in  Minor  Hall  for  the 
purpose  of  considering  the  publication  of  a  legal  journal  by  the  students  of 
the  Law  School.  It  was  unanimously  resolved  to  form  an  association  to 
issue  the  journal,  and  on  April  23,  191 3  a  permanent  organization  of  the 
Virginia  Law  Review  Association,  with  an  editorial  board  and  a  business 
management,  was  effected. 

The  first  number  appeared  in  October,  1913,  and  since  that  time  the 
Review  has  been  published  monthly  eight  times  a  year  from  October  to  May, 
except  during  the  year  of  191 8-' 19,  when  owing  to  the  late  opening  of  the 
Law  School  on  account  of  the  war,  publication  was  necessarily  suspended. 
The  current  issue,  which  through  the  courtesy  of  Mr.  Minor's  committee 
will  be  presented  to  each  of  you  at  the  end  of  the  meeting,  marks  the  close 
of  Volume  VII. 

The  plan  of  the  Virginia  Law  Review  is  quite  similar  to  that  of  the 
Harvard,  the  Columbia,  and  the  other  leading  Reviews.  But  it  differs  from 
many  of  them  in  one  important  respect,  that  is,  in  being  exclusively  a 
student  publication.  Some  of  the  Reviews  are  published  principally  by 
Law  Faculties,  others  have  both  Faculty  and  student  editors,  and  still  others, 
though  having  only  student  editors,  have  Faculty  representatives  who  super- 
vise all  the  work  that  is  done.  It  is  entirely  in  accord  with  the  spirit  and 
traditions  of  Virginia,  with  its  liberal  measure  of  student  control  in  all  its 
activities,  that  the  Law  Review  should  be  pubHshed  by  the  students  alone. 
To  that  fact,  we  believe,  is  largely  attributable  the  self-reliance,  the  interest, 
and  the  fine  esprit  de  corps  which  have  always  characterized  the  editorial  board. 

Each  number  of  the  Review  contains  leading  articles  of  general  interest 
to  the  profession,  Notes,  Recent  Decisions,  Book  Reviews,  and  a  Virginia 
Section.  The  articles  and  Book  Reviews  are  prepared  by  prominent  mem- 
bers of  the  bench  and  bar  and  by  law  teachers,  while  the  Notes  and  Recent 
Decisions  are  entirely  the  work  of  the  editors. 

This  year  saw  the  inauguration  of  the  Virginia  Section.  Due  to  the 
insistent  demand  of  many  of  our  readers,  we  thought  it  well,  although  re- 
taining our  character  as  a  general  rather  than  a  local  journal,  to  establish 
a  section  devoted  exclusively  to  comment  upon  the  Virginia  decisions  and 
statutory  changes.  While  the  material  for  this  department  is  largely  fur- 
nished by  students,  yet  in  order  to  make  it  a  real  forum  for  the  discussion  of 
Virginia  law,  we  have  decided  to  invite  contributions  to  it  from  the  bar  of 
the  State  and  bespeak  for  it  your  interest  and  support. 

From  the  first  the  Review  has  set  a  high  standard,  and  we  beHeve  we 
can  say  without  undue  pride  that  to-day  it  has  attained  a  foremost  rank 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  i6i 

among  the  established  law  journals  of  the  country.  Dean  Lile  and  Professor 
Graves  place  it  just  after  the  Harvard  and  Columbia  Reviews  and  in  the  lead 
of  the  others,  and  the  superiority  of  those  two,  says  Professor  Graves,  is  to 
be  found  in  their  leading  articles,  in  obtaining  which  they  possess  distinct 
advantages  over  us,  and  not  in  the  student  work.  This  classification  reflects 
the  greater  credit  upon  the  Virginia  Law  Review  when  we  consider  that  at 
Harvard  and  Columbia  the  enrolment  far  exceeds  ours  and,  furthermore, 
that  a  baccalaureate  degree  is  required  for  entrance  to  the  Law  School. 

The  editors  of  our  Review  have  been  constantly  encouraged  by  com- 
mendatory expressions  and  requests,  some  from  quite  a  distance.  The  other 
day  we  received  an  order  for  the  Review  and  the  back  volumes  from  the 
League  of  Nations  Library  at  Geneva.  Recently  a  letter  came  from  Regina, 
Saskatchewan,  asking  permission  to  reprint  in  the  Canadian  Law  Times  one 
of  our  articles,  which  was  described  as  "admirable  and  world-wide  in  its 
application."  Some  time  ago  Professor  Isaacs  of  Pittsburgh  and  Professor 
Schaub  of  Harvard  asked  leave  to  reprint  in  their  coming  volume  on  Com- 
mercial Law  some  extracts  from  the  Review,  adding  the  statement  that  "in 
the  present  state  of  our  legal  science,  the  law  journals  are  the  repositories 
of  the  best  thought  in  commercial  law  as  well  as  in  the  other  fields  of  juris- 
prudence." Dean  Wigmore  has  complimented  the  Review  highly,  laying 
particular  stress  upon  its  form  and  appearance.  I  trust  you  will  pardon  a 
reference  to  these  things  when  you  realize  that  they  are  due  not  only  to  the 
work  of  the  present  board,  but  to  that  of  all  our  predecessors. 

While  this  is  the  story  of  what  the  Review  has  accomplished,  we  feel 
that  it  should  do  a  great  deal  more.  In  fact  it  has  reached  a  critical  stage 
in  its  life.  The  present  vastly  increased  cost  of  printing  has  made  it  a  most 
difficult  matter  to  finance  the  Review  with  the  limited  subscription  list  we 
now  have.  This  condition  has  affected  all  the  Reviews  more  or  less  seriously 
according  to  their  circulation  and  resources  from  endowment  or  otherwise. 
Recently  the  Columbia  Law  Review  issued  a  statement  that  unless  it  could 
secure  a  thousand  additional  subscribers  it  might  have  to  suspend  publication. 
The  Virginia  Law  Review  unfortunately  has  no  endowment  and  is  entirely 
dependent  upon  income  from  subscriptions  and  a  few  advertisements. 

Is  it  worth  while  to  keep  it  alive  and  vigorous  ?  That  depends  upon  the 
service  it  is  performing.  To  the  student  here  it  is  a  constant  incentive,  since 
election  to  the  board  is  based  upon  the  quality  of  work  done  in  the  Law 
School.  To  the  editors  it  is  a  very  valuable — some  of  them  consider  it  the 
most  valuable — part  of  their  legal  training.  To  the  Law  School  it  is  a  means 
of  expression,  without  which  the  School  would  be  somewhat  inarticulate, 
and  at  the  same  time  the  best  type  of  advertisement.  Going  into  the  offices 
of  hundreds  of  lawyers,  especially  in  Virginia  and  the  South,  it  should  give  a 
far  clearer  and  more  vivid  idea  of  the  character  of  the  work  in  our  Law  School 


1 62         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

than  any  mere  catalogue.  Can  it  be  doubted  that  if  the  Review  went  to 
several  offices  where  it  now  goes  to  one  it  would  be  instrumental  in  bringing 
many  more  students  to  this  Law  School  ?  If  a  larger  attendance  is  not  to  be 
desired,  then  we  would  be  enabled  to  take  another  forward  step  in  the 
important  matter  of  raising  our  standards  for  admission. 

But  of  what  service  is  the  Review  to  you,  our  alumni?  It  is  a  direct 
means  of  communication,  of  contact  with  the  Law  School.  It  keeps  alive 
your  interest  and  your  memories.  As  it  brings  to  those  here,  through  the 
articles  you  contribute,  the  results  of  your  discoveries  in  the  field  of  active 
practice,  so  it  carries  to  you  the  fruits  of  the  researches  of  Faculty  and 
students  in  the  legal  laboratory  of  Minor  Hall. 

With  your  active  cooperation  the  Review  can  not  only  perform  this 
service,  but  can  steadily  increase  its  usefulness.  Without  your  support,  it 
will  wither  and  die.  There  is  no  reason  why  we  cannot  make  it  the  leading 
organ  of  legal  expression  in  the  South,  as  the  Harvard  Law  Review  is  in  its 
field,  and  a  potent  influence  with  our  courts  and  legislators.  It  should  be  in 
every  way  worthy  of  our  great  Law  School,  which  for  sound  instruction  in 
fundamental  principles  we  all  believe  to  be  second  to  none. 

Our  alumni  are  fully  equal  to  the  task.  With  your  contributions  in 
articles  embodying  the  product  of  your  labors,  your  arguments  in  note- 
worthy cases,  your  views  on  vital  questions,  and  your  suggestions  as  to 
changes  in  our  law  and  procedure,  we  could  publish  a  Review  that  would 
stand  comparison  in  every  respect  with  any  law  journal  in  the  country. 
So  when  you  have  the  material  for  an  interesting  paper,  prepare  it  and  send 
it  to  us,  as  well  as  discussions  for  the  Virginia  Section  or  Book  Reviews. 

In  this  way,  through  your  loyal  support  in  articles  and  subscriptions, 
the  Virginia  Law  Review  can  become  a  powerful,  living  force  in  our  legal 
world,  informed  with  the  noble  spirit  and  standards  of  this  institution,  a 
teacher  of  true  doctrine  in  these  times  of  false  and  dangerous  theories,  a 
champion  of  what  is  sound  and  progressive  in  law  and  government.  Thus 
it  can  be  made  a  source  of  just  pride  to  the  alumni  and  to  the  Law  School. 
The  achievement  of  this  purpose  rests  in  principal  measure  with  you,  and 
we  have  every  confidence  in  your  decision. 


III.    The  Medical  Alumni 

MOVEMENTS  IN  MEDICAL  EDUCATION 
By  William  Holland  Wilmer,  '85,  M.D.,  LL.D.,  of  Washington,  D.  C. 

May  I  take  the  liberty  of  speaking  briefly  of  only  one  phase  of  this 
movement  in  Medical  Education — a  phase,  however,  that  is  uppermost  in 
the  minds  of  every  loving  alumnus  of  the  dear  old  Alma  Mater? 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         163 

When  one  of  the  very  distinguished  members  of  the  Medical  Faculty 
of  this  great  University  courteously  asked  me  to  express  my  views  at  this 
meeting  concerning  the  question  of  removing  the  Medical  Department  to  a 
distant  city,  I  wrote  him  the  question  had  been  so  thoroughly  discussed  by 
Dean  Hough  in  his  fine  report  that  I  could  do  very  little  more  than  to  say 
"Amen."  But  I  wish  to  express  my  personal  views  even  if  they  possess  no 
other  value  than  that  of  a  retrospect,  as  it  has  been  thirty-six  years  since  I 
left  these  beloved  portals.  I  have  seen  the  following  reasons  advanced  for 
the  advisability  of  taking  this  step:  (i)  The  necessity  of  securing  greater 
clinical  material;  (2)  to  avoid  separating  the  Richmond  Medical,  Dentistry, 
and  Pharmacy  Schools;  (3)  economy;  (4)  athletics  are  a  disadvantage  to 
medical  students ;  (5)  the  medical  students  do  not  take  part  in  general  uni- 
versity life ;  (6)  the  general  student  body  does  not  receive  any  profit  from  the 
older  medical  students. 

The  first  three  points  are  the  only  ones  that  require  any  serious  con- 
sideration for  consenting  to  this  radical  and  painful  operation.  The  first 
argument  divides  itself  very  naturally  into  two  main  lines — quantity  and 
quality.  In  the  argument  for  removing  the  Medical  Department,  the 
necessity  of  a  quantity  of  clinical  material  has  been  emphasized.  This 
greatly  emphasized  quantity  is  not  dependent  upon  city  environment.  It 
can  be  obtained  by  enlarging  the  present  hospital  facilities  of  the  University, 
where  there  is  already  in  existence  a  great  teaching  hospital  of  two  hundred 
beds  and  3,500  patients  annually  under  the  control  of  the  staff  of  the  Medical 
Department.  A  hospital  is  like  an  individual.  When  a  reputation  for  work 
of  the  highest  type  has  been  established,  the  numbers  of  patients  seeking 
treatment  will  be  limited  only  by  the  capacity  to  care  for  them.  Among 
the  most  notable  proofs  of  this  fact  are  the  Mayo  Clinic,  at  Rochester, 
Minnesota  (a  town  of  6,000  people) ;  Ann  Arbor,  Michigan ;  Iowa  City, 
Iowa;  Madison,  Wisconsin;  the  three  latter  being  average  university  towns. 
The  hospital  facilities  of  the  great  German  universities  were  entirely  out  of 
proportion  in  size  to  the  small  cities  in  which  they  were  located.  Dr.  Edsall, 
Dean  of  the  Harvard  Medical  School,  says  in  speaking  of  the  University  of 
Virginia :  "  Of  course  clinical  material  is  essential,  but  there  is  no  doubt  in 
my  mind  that  the  clinical  material  can  be  obtained  in  a  perfectly  adequate 
way  just  as  Michigan  and  Iowa  have  done  it . "  Ease  of  communication  and 
transportation  brings  the  suburban  and  the  rural  districts  constantly  into 
closer  contact  with  hospital  centers.  With  the  annihilation  of  many  of  the 
problems  of  time  and  distance  by  the  fast  trains,  the  automobiles  and  the 
prospective  airplanes,  those  hospital  centers  will  be  increasingly  indepen- 
dent in  the  future,  in  regard  to  their  location.  Even  now  in  regard  to  trans- 
portation the  University  of  Virginia  is  excellently  placed.  While  the 
demand  for  quantity  could  certainly  be  adequately  met,  it  is  well  to  remem- 


1 64         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

ber  that  quality  is  even  more  important.  For  after  all,  valuable  preparation 
does  not  lie  in  the  number  of  cases  seen  by  the  student,  but  in  the  great  care 
taken  in  the  study  of  each  case  and  in  the  acquiring  of  the  proper  method  of 
pursuing  that  study  to  the  very  best  advantage.  One  case  exhaustively  and 
efficiently  studied  is  worth  a  dozen  or  more  cases  considered  hastily  or  im- 
perfectly— the  great  temptation  where  the  mass  of  clinical  material  is  very 
large.  Furthermore,  I  wish  to  emphasize  the  point  that  it  is  the  method  that 
must  be  studied  and  not  merely  the  individual  case.  That  great  student  of 
medical  teaching,  Sir  James  MacKenzie,  says :  "  It  is  far  better  to  be  trained 
to  understand  a  few  matters  thoroughly  than  to  have  a  superficial  knowledge 
of  a  great  many  things." 

In  addition  to  these  points  of  "quantity"  and  "quality"  there  is 
another  question  about  this  suggested  change  that  requires  serious  con- 
sideration— vocational  instruction  versus  the  teaching  given  by  the  busy 
practitioner  of  medicine  in  a  large  city.  The  practitioner  is  certainly 
handicapped.  He  is  often  harassed  by  a  number  of  serious  and  pressing 
cases  that  demand  his  attention.  At  best,  it  is  difficult  for  him  to  find  the 
time  for  regular  didactic  lectures  or  for  clinical  instruction — often  to  the 
detriment  of  his  students.  In  Outdoor  Departments,  the  teaching  is  often 
left  to  younger  men  who  have  not  sufficiently  broad  experience  to  enable 
them  to  give  the  student  the  best  viewpoint  in  the  most  important  study  of 
the  beginnings  of  disease.  In  the  fundamental  branches  there  can  be  no 
comparison  between  the  advantage  of  the  instruction  under  the  professor 
who  is  vocational,  and  the  teaching  by  the  practicing  physician.  This  is 
well  illustrated  by  the  teaching  of  anatomy  at  our  Alma  Mater.  I  know  of 
no  other  university  in  any  land  where  anatomy  has  been  so  well  and  unfor- 
getably  taught.  This  splendid  instruction  has  been  a  very  great  and  lasting 
asset  to  every  one  of  the  medical  graduates  of  the  University.  The  achieve- 
ments of  its  alumni  prove  that  the  teaching  there  in  the  past  has  beefi 
efficient  in  lines  other  than  the  so-called  "fundamentals."  The  recent 
graduates,  too,  have  been  most  successful  in  competitive  examinations  for 
hospital  positions,  where  clinical  and  laboratory  tests  were  required.  For 
the  last  five  years,  not  a  single  one  of  the  graduates  has  failed  to  pass  the 
examination  of  any  State  Board.  I  have  known  of  instances  in  New  York 
where  among  all  the  men  who  took  the  examination  for  filling  two  hospital 
vacancies,  both  of  the  coveted  positions  were  won  by  graduates  of  the 
University  of  Virginia. 

The  second  argument,  that  it  is  necessary  to  associate  with  the  Medical 
School  the  departments  of  Dentistry  and  Pharmacy,  as  now  exist  in  Rich- 
mond, is  easily  met.  These  two  departments  can  function,  as  they  do  in 
other  cities,  apart  from  a  Medical  School;  and,  at  present  there  are  needs 
more  urgent  than  the  addition  of  these  departments  here.    In  due  time  this 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  165 

can  be  brought  about.  I  personally  feel  that  Dentistry  is  becoming  such  an 
important  part  of  the  Medical  Science  that  a  Dentistry  Department  should 
be  instituted  later  at  the  University  of  Virginia  and  I  am  sure  that  it  could 
be  accomplished  without  difficulty.  The  atmosphere  of  university  life  would 
be  of  inestimable  value  to  the  dental  student.  There  is  no  reason  why  a 
practical  clinical  department  of  Pharmacy  and  Therapeutics  should  not  be 
established  also.  In  this  connection  it  may  be  interesting  to  quote  what 
Sir  James  MacKenzie  says  in  regard  to  medical  education:  "Each  time  a 
drug  is  given,  the  teacher  must  give  the  reason  for  presenting  it,  and  the 
student  must  be  set  to  watch  the  effects  it  is  supposed  to  produce."  This 
sound  and  practical  advice  can  only  be  followed  in  a  faculty-controlled 
hospital.  By  this  means  the  student  may  have  the  opportunity  of  seeing 
remedies  prescribed  on  grounds  of  reason  and  not  of  credulity.  These 
suggestions  for  two  new  departments  are  made,  because,  in  my  mind's  eye 
I  see  a  well  rounded,  evenly  balanced,  vitalized  University  in  the  future, 
and  not  one  shorn  of  its  glory.  Even  the  division  of  the  four  year  course  is 
detrimental  to  the  highest  medical  education. 

There  is  much  dissatisfaction  in  the  minds  of  the  broadest  thinkers 
upon  the  subject  of  medical  education.  It  is  a  cause  of  thankfulness  that 
they  do  not  apply  to  the  University  of  Virginia  as  now  conducted.  The 
objections  are  that  anatomy,  for  instance,  "is  often  but  an  intelligent 
description  of  facts,  so  that  the  student  is  btu-dened  with  an  accumulation  of 
many  trivial  details. ' '  Sir  James  MacKenzie  in  regard  to  medical  education 
says  that  ' '  Physiology  is  such  a  broad  subject  that  it  is  difficult  to  deter- 
mine how  much  is  necessary  to  impart  to  the  medical  student."  This 
criticism  is  true  of  the  other  so-called  medical  sciences.  However,  in  a 
medical  department,  with  buildings  clustered  around  the  campus,  the 
teachers  of  the  fundamentals  come  into  closer  contact  with  their  fellow 
professors  of  clinical  work  and  laboratory  investigation  than  could  possibly 
be  the  case  in  a  large  city  away  from  the  Mother  University.  In  this  way 
they  have  a  closer  insight  into  the  practical  problems  necessary  for  the 
student. 

The  third  argument  for  removing  the  Medical  Department  is  economy. 
"Efficiency  and  not  retrenchment  is  true  economy, "  wrote  that  sagacious 
statesman,  Disraeli.  This  is  a  saying  for  all  time.  The  education  that  is 
the  most  economic  is  not  the  one  that  costs  the  fewest  dollars,  but  the  one 
that  is  the  best,  the  most  efficient  and  broadening,  for  the  least  relative 
financial  outlay.  Dr.  Flexner  wisely  says:  "It  is  easier  and  cheaper  to 
bring  patients  to  Charlottesville  than  to  reproduce  the  University  labora- 
tories, workers,  libraries,  and  spirit  anywhere  else." 

A  University  like  our  beloved  Alma  Mater,  with  its  beautiful  and 
healthy  situation,  its  charming  social  advantages  and  its  broad  cultural 


1 66         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

opportunities,  will  always  attract  the  best  type  of  instructors;  but  separa- 
tion from  the  life  of  a  great  university  and  the  associations  of  colleagues, 
together  with  the  higher  cost  of  living  in  the  city,  would  have  the  reverse 
effect. 

The  disadvantage  of  athletics  to  medical  students  forms  the  fourth 
argument.  Quite  to  the  contrary,  athletics,  which  have  become  such  an 
integral  part  of  college  life — and  justly  so — are  benefited  by  the  participa- 
tion of  medical  men.  The  instances  where  medical  students  have  led  in  all 
types  of  athletic  sports  are  too  numerous  to  mention.  It  is  equally  true  that 
medical  students  are  vastly  helped  by  athletics.  Quick  and  accurate  re- 
sponse of  brain  and  muscle  to  each  stimulus  is  thereby  inculcated.  The 
medical  student  above  all  others  should  have  a  "sound  mind  in  a  sound 
body." 

Whatever  may  be  the  case  at  other  universities,  the  fifth  and  sixth 
arguments  that  the  medical  students  do  not  take  part  in  general  university 
life,  and  that  the  general  student  body  does  not  receive  any  benefit  from  the 
older  medical  students,  are  not  at  all  applicable  to  the  charming  life  at  our 
dear  old  University.  As  far  as  my  own  personal  experience  goes,  my  dear 
friend  and  roommate  of  my  first  year  at  the  University  was  a  student  in  the 
academic  department  and  he  is  now  a  very  distinguished  Episcopal  minister. 
In  my  second  year,  my  roommate  was  a  brilliant  student  of  law  and  the 
judge  of  the  "moot  court "  the  following  year.  The  third  year  my  room  on 
East  Lawn  was  in  the  midst  of  men  who  have  since  become  leaders  in  their 
respective  walks  of  life — distinguished  scientists,  senators,  judges.  As  class 
commander  of  1885,  some  of  the  most  delightful  letters  received  have  been 
from  classmates  who  had  not  been  in  the  Medical  Department.  To  illus- 
trate the  close  cultural  relations  between  the  students  in  the  different  depart- 
ments, I  have  only  to  recall  to  my  collegemates  of  long  ago  some  of  the 
episodes  of  our  college  life.  I  can  remember  as  if  yesterday  the  eloquent 
lecture  of  Professor  Smith  upon  ' '  Gravity ' ' — not  to  be  erased  by  the  theories 
of  Relativity.  Notable  too  was  the  fascinating  lecture  upon  "Opium"  by 
Dr.  Davis.  There  were  many  such  occasions  when  the  lectures  were  so  in- 
teresting, so  charming,  so  impressive  that  they  drew  students  from  all 
departments. 

The  very  association  with  the  great  men  who  were  teachers  in  those 
days  was  a  liberal  education  in  itself.  This  has  been  equally  true  in  years 
since  then. 

Who  in  the  eighties  could  forget  the  gentle  tap  upon  the  door  and  in 
response  to  "come  in,"  the  entrance  of  Dr.  John  Staige  Davis.  After  an 
apology  for  interruption  he  sat  down  for  a  chat  for  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes. 
The  medical  student  was  left  charmed  and  energized  and  returned  to  even 
his  fundamentals  with  renewed  zest.    Or,  who  could  forget  the  kindness  and 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         167 

helpfulness  of  that  commanding  figure,  Dr.  Cabell?  Dr.  Towles  taught 
anatomy  in  such  a  way  that  he  made  it  as  delightful  as  it  is  indelible.  These 
men  had  the  true  vision — not  to  pitch  the  greatest  number  of  students,  but 
to  set  a  high  standard  and  to  elevate  the  men  to  that  standard,  and  thus  to 
secure  the  greatest  number  of  well- trained  men  for  service. 

William  James,  in  his  interesting  brochure,  "On  Vital  Reserves,"  em- 
phasizes the  fact  that  all  men  "energize  "  far  below  their  normal  maximum. 
Athletes  are  familiar  with  this  fact  of  "second  wind."  The  successful  and 
most  useful  men  push  farther  and  farther  away  the  barrier  of  fatigue.  This 
is  an  evident  fact  that  the  busiest  men  are  those  who  still  take  time  for  out- 
side activities.  The  student  in  contact  with  the  multifarious  activities  of 
university  life  will  "energize"  at  a  higher  level  than  those  segregated  into  a 
class — which  too  often  occurs  when  one  department  is  located  in  a  large 
city  away  from  the  parent  university.  It  has  been  well  said  that  "The 
most  important  factor  is  university  contact,  ideals  and  activities."  On 
the  whole,  the  body  thus  isolated  will  be  inferior  to  a  similar  body  "run  at  a 
higher  pressure."  Can  the  State  of  Virginia  afford  to  take  away  from  the 
medical  students  within  its  gates,  those  great  stimuli  that  "awaken  the 
energies  of  loyalty,  courage,  endurance  or  devotion?" 

The  tendency  of  medical  science  is  towards  prevention  and  not  cure. 
The  advance  in  surgery  is  marvelous  beyond  expression,  but  it  is  a  con- 
fession in  each  case  of  the  failure  of  prevention.  It  should  be  resorted  to 
only  when  there  is  no  possibility  of  relief  in  other  ways.  If  this  applies  to  the 
individual,  how  much  more  does  it  apply  to  the  growing,  vigorous  University 
of  Virginia,  where  dismemberment  by  amputation  of  one  of  its  most  essential 
parts  seems  as  abhorrent  as  it  is  unwise? 

Even  at  the  risk  of  repetition,  the  words  of  men  like  Dr.  Edsall  and  Dr. 
Flexner  should  be  emphasized  at  this  critical  juncture  in  the  affairs  of  the 
University.  The  former  feels  so  strongly  the  importance  of  intimate  con- 
tact with  the  general  university  that  he  says :  "  I  should  be  very  glad  indeed 
if  the  mere  three  or  four  miles  that  separate  the  Harvard  Medical  School 
from  Harvard  University  could  be  wiped  out." 

After  calling  attention  to  the  fact  that ' '  the  independent  medical  school 
has  practically  disappeared  in  the  last  ten  years, "  and  that  "the  universities 
have  simply  had  to  take  charge  of  medical  education  because  they  alone 
have  the  correct  point  of  view  of  spirit,"  Dr.  Flexner,  one  of  the  greatest 
authorities  on  medical  education,  goes  so  far  as  to  say :  "  It  is  my  conviction 
— a  conviction  born  of  observation  over  a  very  wide  area — that  Virginia 
will  hardly  be  able  to  develop  a  school  of  the  highest  grade  except  as  an 
immediate  part  of  the  State  University  in  Charlottesville. " 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  specialists  in  Medical  Education  are 
against  this  transfer.    Four  college  presidents,  eight  deans  of  medical  schools 


1 68  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

and  fifty  professors  have  registered  their  opposition.  The  Medical  Faculty 
of  the  University  of  Virginia  is  against  it ;  and  I  do  not  personally  know  a 
single  one  of  the  medical  alumni  who  has  not  protested  against  this  step. 
Moreover,  there  is  no  precedent  for  the  transfer  of  a  medical  school  that  has 
been  functioning  efficiently  for  a  hundred  years.  Those  who  are  pressing 
favorably  this  transfer  must  bear  the  burden  of  proof.  If,  in  the  face  of  the 
opposition  of  the  Medical  Faculty,  the  alumni  body,  and  the  experts  in 
medical  education  from  all  sections  of  the  country,  they  carry  through  this 
unfortunate  policy  the  burden  of  responsibility  for  the  unnecessary  handicap 
fastened  upon  the  future  graduates  of  the  Medical  School,  will  be  theirs. 

From  a  broad  philosophic  point  of  view  no  doubt  can  arise  concerning 
the  great  wisdom  of  keeping  intact  the  present  structure  of  our  beloved 
Mother  University.  Sir  James  MacKenzie  says  that  "We  are  all  creatures 
whose  mode  of  thought  is  influenced  by  tradition  and  environment.  Teach- 
ing and  particularly  medical  teaching,  is  more  affected  by  tradition  than 
almost  any  other  subject. "  When  the  tradition  is  as  noble  as  it  is  here,  and 
the  environment  as  inspiring,  it  would  be  indeed  unfortunate  to  lose  them. 
There  is  an  old  text  that  "Wisdom  is  the  principal  thing;  therefore  get 
wisdom:  and  with  all  thy  getting  get  understanding."  The  man  who  has 
the  deepest  understanding,  the  broadest  point  of  view  and  the  widest  vision 
is  the  man  who  will  give  the  greatest  service  to  humanity.  President  Al- 
derman has  said:  "Scholarship  and  knowledge  fulfill  themselves  only  in 
service  to  men." 

While  close  association  with  men  of  diverse  trains  of  thought  is  a  most 
potent  factor  in  producing  the  wise  psychiatral  point  of  view  so  essential 
to  the  highest  success  in  every  form  of  life's  activity,  environment  is  an  equal 
force  in  man's  development.  Who  could  spend  a  portion  of  the  plastic  period 
of  youth  in  this  ideal  spot,  with  its  beauty  of  hills  and  valleys,  its  inspiring 
architecture,  its  splendid  ideals  and  ennobling  traditions  without  being 
better  fitted  for  service  to  his  state,  his  country  and  to  his  fellowman  ? 

This  Centennial  Celebration  of  our  Alma  Mater  has  been  a  memorable 
and  happy  occasion.  Her  sons  have  returned  to  her  in  goodly  numbers. 
Her  sister  universities  and  scientific  and  educational  bodies  have  striven  to 
do  her  honor.  Speakers  of  rare  eloquence  have  expressed  in  glowing  phrases 
their  conviction  that  her  vigorous  and  inspiring  past  is  but  an  earnest  of  her 
splendid  future.  The  far-seeing  Rector  with  pointed  epigram  and  eloquent 
appeal  has  shown  us  the  way  of  duty  and  of  lofty  ideals.  He  has  extolled 
her  vital  essence,  and  shown  that  it  was  her  spirit,  breathed  into  those 
valiant  youths  while  in  these  sacred  precincts,  that  enabled  them  to  fight 
for  the  cause  of  freedom,  and  to  make  the  supreme  sacrifice  for  the  right. 
Shall  we  who  have  not  been  called  upon  to  lay  down  our  lives,  be  less  true 
than  they  to  the  inspiration  of  this  beloved  Mother?    They  have  glorified 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  169 

her  in  their  sacrifices;  shall  not  we  add  to  her  strength  and  beauty  until 
another  generation  can  take  from  our  hands  the  privilege  of  loving  upbuild- 
ing? But  even  while  all  honor  is  being  paid  to  her  and  her  praises  sung  by 
all,  a  shadow  falls  across  the  hearts  of  many  of  her  devoted  sons  at  the 
thought  of  the  dismemberment  that  is  purposed  for  this  nurturing  mother. 

In  the  mind  of  Thomas  Jefferson  there  was  a  true  university  with  all 
of  the  schools  that  we  have  now — and  more  in  addition.  He  did  not  seek  to 
found  an  academy  or  a  college,  but  a  university  of  glorious  proportion. 
Shall  this  beautiful  dream  be  turned  into  an  unrestful  nightmare?  What 
excuse  can  we  offer  the  "Master-Builder"  if  we  do  not  strive  to  avert  this 
work  of  disintegration  of  the  fabric  that  he  wrought  so  lovingly  ? 

The  medical  student  is  as  true  a  son  to  Alma  Mater  as  any  other  son. 
Is  he  therefore  to  be  denied  his  rightful  inheritance?  If  so,  then  other  sons 
will  ultimately  be  deprived  of  their  portions,  once  this  vicious  process  has 
begun.  Do  not  take  from  the  medical  student  his  precious  heritage  inspired 
by  the  brilliant  genius  of  Thomas  Jefferson — this  beautiful  creation  called 
the  University  of  Virginia.  Leave  him  where  he  can  exclaim  with  his 
brethren  of  the  other  schools,  as  they  look  from  the  beauty  of  architecture 
to  the  mountains  of  blue :  "  I  will  lift  up  mine  eyes  unto  the  hills  from  whence 
cometh  my  help." 

IV.    The  Engineering  Alumni 

OPENING  DISCUSSION  OF  THE  TOPIC,  "ORGANIZATION  OF  AN  ENGINEERING 

ALUMNI  COUNCIL" 

By  Allen  Jeter  Saville,  'o8,  M.E.,  Director  of  Public  Works,  Richmond,  Va. 

Mr.  Chairman  and  Gentlemen: 

Some  years  ago  while  on  a  visit  to  the  University  several  of  us  were 
talking  of  our  experiences,  and  discussing  what  we  thought  of  the  training 
at  the  University  in  the  light  of  these  experiences.  That  conversation  re- 
sulted in  my  being  asked  to  present  this  paper  to-day. 

As  you  know,  engineers  are  now  split  up  into  so  many  different  special- 
ties that  it  is  not  possible  for  a  young  man  at  college  to  get  familiar  with  all 
of  these  specialties.  The  best  thing  to  be  done  at  college,  I  believe,  is  just 
what  is  being  done  here.  That  is,  teach  the  foundation  principles,  and  leave 
it  to  the  man  to  later  supply  the  technic  of  his  chosen  specialty. 

There  are  several  reasons  why  this  is  the  best  course  but  perhaps  the 
one  that  will  first  occur  to  a  man  who  has  not  been  at  college  for  ten  years  is, 
that  it  is  very  difficult  to  dig  into  the  fundamental  principles,  after  a  few 
years  out  of  college. 

There  are  some  drawbacks,  however,  to  this  method  of  teaching  only 


I70         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

the  fundamentals  at  college.  I  think  that  the  greatest  of  these  is,  on  account 
of  the  theoretical  nature  of  his  training  a  graduate  does  not  appreciate  the 
practical  limits  of  application  of  theory.  I  remember  hearing  of  the  two 
Engineering  seniors  who  had  to  get  the  contours  of  a  mountain  ravine,  and 
set  their  pegs  ten  feet  apart  each  way.  Of  course  their  work  was  accurate 
but  there  was  no  need  of  this  accuracy.  Another  result  of  the  specialization 
that  is  now  in  vogue  is,  that  college  men  become  narrow  and  develop  in  a 
one-sided  fashion.  This  is  decidedly  to  the  disadvantage  of  the  students,  as 
very  few  of  them  know  exactly  what  line  of  work  they  will  get  into  before 
they  have  been  out  of  college  many  years. 

How  to  retain  at  the  University  our  present  system  of  teaching  the 
fundamentals,  and  at  the  same  time  remedy  the  drawbacks  to  this  method 
is  the  proposition  that  we  are  here  to  consider  this  afternoon.  When  I 
speak  of  the  University  teaching  fundamentals,  I  do  not  mean  that  practical* 
consideration  is  altogether  neglected,  but  I  mean  that  theory  rather  than 
practice  is  emphasized. 

The  suggestion  offered  for  your  consideration  as  a  remedy  is  as  follows : 

That  at  least  once  each  term  an  alumnus  read  a  paper  before  the  whole 
Engineering  School,  on  some  practical  work,  in  some  branch  of  Engineering. 
This  scheme,  I  believe,  has  many  interesting  possibilities. 

In  the  first  place,  it  provides  for  the  student  some  definite,  tangible 
evidence  of  the  practical  application  of  the  work  he  is  doing.  In  the 
second  place,  these  papers  will  necessarily  be  on  various  kinds  of  work  so 
that  the  student  gets  a  view  of  the  practical  limits  used,  and  also  gets  some 
insight  into  the  practical  work  of  many  lines  of  Engineering.  Incidentally, 
it  will  undoubtedly  help  the  younger  student  to  decide  what  branch  of 
Engineering  he  would  most  likely  take  up,  by  giving  him  a  clear  picture 
of  the  work  being  done  in  the  various  lines.  The  benefit  to  be  derived  will 
not  be  confined  to  the  student.  Such  a  scheme  will  keep  the  alumni  inter- 
ested in  the  University,  and  I  believe  will  be  also  very  interesting  to  the 
faculty  in  that  it  would  keep  them  informed  as  to  the  methods  used  in 
practice  that  would  perhaps  not  otherwise  be  brought  to  their  attention. 

I  do  not  believe  it  will  be  difficult  to  get  the  alumni  to  take  hold  of  this, 
as  the  papers  are  not  supposed  to  be  essays  on  highly  technical  subjects,  but 
rather  simple  descriptions  of  work  done  and  methods  used.  I  think  that 
these  papers  should  preferably  be  written  about  work  the  alumnus  was 
engaged  in  himself.  They  might  describe  design  or  construction.  The 
main  point  should  be  that  they  are  to  be  practical,  and  as  far  as  possible  in 
detail. 

Now,  as  to  the  practical  operation  of  such  a  scheme,  I  would  suggest 
that  there  be  a  committee  of  ten,  consisting  of  two  professors,  two  students, 
and  six  alumni,  with  the  dean  of  the  department  as  chairman;  the  two 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         171 

professors  to  be  appointed  by  the  dean,  the  two  students  to  be  elected  by  the 
student  body,  and  the  six  alumni  to  be  the  last  six  speakers.  This  may  seem 
a  rather  unwieldy  committee  but  I  believe  that  these  many  are  needed  in 
order  to  keep  in  touch  with  the  various  interests. 

Of  course,  money  will  be  needed  to  pay  expenses.  My  suggestion  would 
be  that  the  students  contribute  one  dollar  a  year  each,  and  each  alumnus 
be  asked  to  contribute  an  amount  sufficient  to  meet  all  expenses,  perhaps 
not  over  two  dollars  and  a  half  each. 

I  think  that  in  order  to  relieve  any  embarrassment,  the  University 
should  pay  the  expenses  of  every  alumnus  who  returns  to  the  University. 
I  believe  that  if  this  scheme  is  put  into  operation  it  will  prove  to  be  both 
interesting  and  profitable. 

There  is  no  reason  why  engineers  not  alumni  should  not  be  asked  to 
address  the  student  body,  but  I  believe  it  would  be  best  always  to  have  three 
a  year  from  the  alumni.  Of  course  we  all  know  that  engineers  are  not  very 
keen  for  making  speeches  but  this  proposition  is  simply  reading  a  paper 
describing  some  work  with  which  he  is  thoroughly  familiar. 

If  this  scheme  is  good  enough,  it  should  be  adopted,  and  if  adopted 
carried  out  enthusiastically. 

There  are  many  other  benefits  to  be  derived  by  this  contact  between 
the  alumni  and  students,  and  I  hope  the  scheme  will  be  given  a  trial. 


THE  CIVIL  ENGINEER'S  POINT  OP  VIEW 
By  Walter  Jones  Laird,  '09,  C.E.,  of  Wilmington,  Del. 

I  have  been  asked  to  make  a  few  remarks,  from  the  standpoint  of  a 
Civil  Engineer,  regarding  the  feasibility  of  forming  an  Engineering  Alumni 
Council. 

To  my  mind  such  a  Council  is  a  very  necessary  adjunct  to  the  fullest 
development  of  the  Engineering  courses  and  for  general  helpfulness  in  many 
other  apparent  ways. 

I  am  sure  we  all  feel  the  necessity  for  keeping  the  Engineering  courses 
abreast  of  the  times,  just  as  the  Engineering  profession  in  general  must 
continue  to  progress.  We  cannot  be  in  the  position  of  the  old  mountaineer 
and  his  bride  from  one  of  the  neighboring  mountains,  who  came  to  Charlottes- 
ville during  my  college  days  and  proceeded  to  take  a  trolley  ride  from  the 
lower  end  of  town  to  the  University.  As  the  car  became  crowded  the  con- 
ductor came  in  and  asked  the  passengers,  in  a  rather  harsh  manner,  to  move 
along.  The  mountaineer  got  up  indignantly  and  said  to  the  conductor: 
"I've  done  paid  my  ten  cents  and  Mame  is  going  to  sit  where  she  damn  are." 
We  cannot  sit  where  we  are  even  though  some  of  us  Alumni  are  inclined  to 


172  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

think  that  the  Engineering  courses  and  methods  of  our  college  days  are 
sufficiently  good  for  any  of  the  younger  men  entering  college.  We  too  must 
"move  along"  and  realize  that  just  as  the  last  few  decades  have  seen  the 
ferryboat  of  one-man  power,  on  certain  of  our  rivers,  replaced  by  beautiful 
spans  of  steel  and  masonry,  and  have  seen  the  mule  and  winch  of  other  days 
replaced  by  the  Corliss  engine  or  the  Turbo  Generator,  representing  en- 
gineering skill  of  to-day,  so  technical  education  must  advance  and  we  must 
help  where  possible  to  provide  the  men  who  are  going  out  into  the  Engineer- 
ing world  from  our  colleges  with  the  best  that  can  be  given  them  in  a  well 
balanced,  practical,  and  theoretical  Engineering  coiu-se. 

This  is  being  accomplished  in  great  measure  by  our  Faculty  at  Virginia, 
but  their  efforts  could  undoubtedly  be  facilitated  by  proper  cooperation  from 
the  Engineering  Alumni. 

There  is  certainly  no  reason  why  an  Engineering  Council  is  not  prac- 
tical, if  we  do  not  attempt  to  carry  its  functions  too  far.  The  members 
could  either  be  appointed  by  the  Dean  of  the  Engineering  Department  or 
elected  from  time  to  time  by  the  Alumni  by  means  of  the  letter  ballot,  or  the 
Council  brought  into  being  in  some  other  approved  way.  In  order  to  com- 
mand more  diversity  of  talent  and  advice,  and  also  not  place  a  too  perma- 
nent burden  on  any  one  group  of  Engineering  Alumni,  it  would  seem  wise  to 
have  the  term  of  Council  members  limited  to  about  three  years  for  each 
individual  and  to  have  terms  rotate  so  there  would  be  a  majority  of  older 
incumbents  in  office  all  the  time. 

This  Council  would  place  on  certain  Alumni  the  definite  duty  of  keeping 
in  touch  with  the  curriculum  of  their  Alma  Mater  and  of  suggesting  from 
time  to  time  changes  or  additions  that  appear  important  when  viewed  from 
the  standpoint  of  an  engineer  who  has  observed  everyday  practice  and  usage 
in  his  particular  locality. 

It  would  be  of  value  in  helping  establish  a  series  of  Alumni  lectures  on 
practical  engineering  subjects  and  it  would  help  maintain  a  proper  balance 
between  the  practical  and  theoretical  sides  of  the  Engineering  courses.  For 
example:  Many  engineers  have  advocated  greater  shop  facilities  and  very 
much  more  extensive  shop  and  field  training  than  is  now  given  in  many 
colleges,  including  the  University  of  Virginia.  It  is  undoubtedly  advantage- 
ous for  an  engineer,  upon  leaving  college,  to  have  a  sufficiently  practical 
knowledge  of  some  phase  of  engineering  work  to  enable  him  to  make  a  decent 
living  from  the  outset.  If,  for  instance,  a  man  has  obtained  in  college  or 
during  summer  vacations  a  thorough  knowledge  of  transit  work,  he  may  at 
once  after  leaving  the  University  be  self-supporting;  whereas,  he  might 
otherwise  lose  some  time  in  getting  on  his  feet,  and  in  some  instances  might 
be  discouraged  to  the  point  of  going  into  some  other  line  of  work. 

Personally,  I  think  a  very  limited  course  in  the  fundamentals  of  shop 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  173 

and  field  work  is  sufficient  in  most  cases  and  allows  of  additional  time  being 
given  to  important  correlated  studies  which  are  of  great  value  to  the 
average  engineer  in  everyday  practice,  and  are  very  much  harder  to  obtain 
out  of  college  than  is  additional  practical  experience.  Some  years  ago, 
courses  in  Economics,  Contract  Law,  etc.,  were  considered  unnecessary  to 
the  average  engineer,  but  now  we  find  many  of  our  engineers  requiring  a 
knowledge  of  these  subjects  as  much  as  of  some  of  the  straight  Engineering 
studies,  hence  the  need  of  including  such  subjects  in  a  complete  Engineering 
course. 

This  leads  an  Engineering  Faculty  to  the  problem  of  arranging,  where 
possible,  for  auxiliary  courses  in  practical  shop  and  field  work  between 
college  sessions,  rather  than  to  take  an  undue  number  of  hours  out  of  the 
important  college  sessions  to  devote  to  the  purely  practical  sides  of  the 
student's  work.  Such  cooperative  courses  are  in  successful  operation  at  the 
Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology,  the  University  of  Cincinnati,  etc. 
An  Engineering  Council  could  undoubtedly  offer  some  valuable  suggestions 
in  a  case  of  this  kind, 

A  further  important  feature  of  the  Engineering  Council  from  another 
side  would  be  to  keep  all  of  our  Engineering  Alumni  alive  to  and  keenly 
interested  in  the  activities  of  their  Department  in  college.  Too  many  of  us 
are  inclined  to  forget  what  our  own  college  is  doing  and  when  an  opportunity 
comes  from  time  to  time  to  advise  some  student  what  college  to  enter,  and 
to  explain  the  advantages  of  our  college  training,  we  are  not  in  a  good  posi- 
tion to  do  so ;  nor  are  we  apt  to  be  as  interested  in  helping  to  place  Alumni 
who  leave  the  University.  The  mere  fact  of  having  an  Engineering  Alumni 
Council  working  among  us  would  tend  to  stimulate  continued  interest  in  the 
University  and  its  Engineering  Department.  Therefore,  I  hope  such  a 
Council  can  be  brought  into  existence  in  the  near  future. 


THE  MECHANICAL  ENGINEER'S  POINT  OF  VIEW 

By  William  Carrington  Lancaster,  '03,  M.E.,  E.E.,  of  New  York  City 

It  is  a  far  cry  from  the  young  engineer  graduate  proudly  wearing  the 
emblems  of  many  college  societies,  and  glorying  in  a  long  list  of  honors  won 
in  the  classroom  and  in  athletics,  to  this  same  graduate,  a  few  months  later, 
in  overalls  and  a  flannel  shirt.  No  matter  how  brilliant  has  been  his  career 
through  college,  no  matter  how  high  have  been  his  marks  on  examinations, 
no  matter  how  profound  his  knowledge  of  mechanics,  of  hydraulics,  or  of 
thermodynamics,  the  mechanical  engineer  graduate  must  don  the  garb  of  the 
laborer,  and  learn  by  the  sweat  of  his  brow,  the  practical  details  that  are 
essential  to  the  successful  practice  of  his  profession. 


174         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

More  appealing  is  the  early  work  of  the  civil  engineer.  His  life  is  largely 
in  the  open.  "The  Call  of  the  Wild"  attracts  him.  His  is  a  picturesque 
figure  as  he  peers  through  a  transit,  standing  in  sunny  fields  of  green  and 
waving  to  his  rod-man  away  off  across  some  babbling  brook.  He  appeals 
to  the  popular  imagination.  The  hero  of  the  novel,  if  he  is  an  engineer,  is 
always  a  civil  engineer. 

Not  so  happy  is  the  lot  of  the  young  mechanical  engineer.  There  is 
nothing  picturesque  about  the  grease  and  grime  of  the  machine  shop,  or  the 
rattle  and  bang  of  the  boiler  factory.  But  he  must  spend  several  years,  at 
least,  in  some  such  shop  or  factory,  before  he  has  learned  enough  of  the 
practical  side  of  engineering  to  be  eligible  for  a  position  of  responsibility. 
This  is  true  even  when  he  had  graduated  from  one  of  the  large  colleges  with 
magnificently  equipped  shops  and  laboratories,  where  he  has  spent  many 
hours  and  has  become  familiar  with  every  machine.  How  valuable  then  is 
the  college  degree  to  the  mechanical  engineer? 

The  great  national  engineering  societies  all  have  as  a  requirement  for 
full  membership,  an  engineering  degree  plus  a  certain  number  of  years  of 
experience  in  responsible  charge  of  engineering  work;  or,  a  certain  larger 
number  of  years  of  experience  without  the  college  degree.  For  example,  the 
American  Society  of  Mechanical  Engineers  requires  an  engineering  degree 
and  three  years,  or  five  years  without  the  degree.  In  other  words  the  degree 
is  considered  equivalent  to  two  years  of  experience  in  responsible  charge  of 
engineering  work. 

The  engineering  college  then  does  not  turn  out  a  finished  product. 
When  he  leaves  college,  the  engineer  graduate  is  nowhere  near  ready  to 
practice  his  profession.  To  a  limited  extent,  the  same  thing  may  be  said  of 
the  other  professions.  The  graduate  in  medicine  generally  takes  a  post- 
graduate course  at  some  hospital;  the  young  lawyer  often  serves  as  little 
more  than  a  clerk  in  some  large  law  firm ;  and  the  preacher  begins  with  a 
small  country  church. 

But  the  medical  graduate  is  very  soon  a  full  fledged  doctor.  His  hospi- 
tal course  may  last  only  a  few  months,  or  he  may  elect  to  take  none  at  all. 
Just  as  soon  as  he  passes  the  State  Board  examinations,  which  he  does 
promptly  before  he  forgets  what  he  has  learned  at  college,  he  starts  the 
practice  of  medicine  and  is  in  responsible  charge  of  the  lives  of  his  patients. 

The  graduate  in  law  likewise  passes  the  Bar  Examinations  just  as  soon 
as  possible  and  can  then  practice  law.  He  is  in  responsible  charge  of  the 
rights  of  his  clients. 

The  preacher  starts  to  preach  as  soon  as  he  enters  his  little  country 
church  and  immediately  is  in  responsible  charge  of  the  souls  of  his  flock. 

It  is  not  so  with  the  engineer.  He  has  no  State  examinations  to  pass. 
The  law  does  not  create  him  an  engineer  by  giving  him  a  license  to  practice. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         175 

No  license  is  required  of  him.  He  stands  solely  on  his  merits.  Perhaps  it  is 
partly  for  this  reason  that  he  must  go  through  long  years  of  arduous  work 
with  small  pay  before  he  is  recognized  as  a  real  engineer. 

An  important  question  then  presents  itself. 

Is  there  something  fundamentally  wrong  with  our  method  of  teaching 
engineering,  and  should  the  engineering  college  attempt  to  turn  out  the 
graduate  so  thoroughly  instructed  in  both  theory  and  practice  that  he  can 
more  quickly  take  his  place  in  the  world  as  an  engineer  ready  and  capable 
of  taking  responsible  charge  of  engineering  work  ? 

Apparently  the  answer  is  both  "yes"  and  "no." 

In  the  first  place  of  course  the  graduate  is  too  young  to  be  immediately 
put  in  responsible  charge  of  important  work.  He  must  first  learn  such 
things  as  organization  and  directing  the  work  of  others.  His  judgment  is 
apt  to  be  faulty.  These  things  come  only  with  experience  and  the  passing 
years.  But  we  are  not  concerned  with  these.  His  shortcomings  merely 
because  of  his  youth  cannot  be  helped  by  the  college,  and  they  apply  equally 
in  other  professions. 

What  we  have  to  consider  are  questions  as  to  whether  the  courses  of 
instruction  can  be  changed  for  his  benefit,  and  if  so  how  we  Alumni  can 
help  to  do  it. 

Doubtless  many  young  men  are  deterred  from  taking  up  engineering, 
and  especially  mechanical  engineering,  by  the  thought  of  the  long  years  of 
disagreeable  and  poorly  paid  work  that  must  follow  their  graduation.  Pos- 
sibly many  brilliant  minds  are  thus  lost  so  far  as  mechanical  engineering 
is  concerned.  Other  professions  get  them.  For  this  reason  it  would  seem 
desirable  to  so  change  the  course  of  instruction,  if  possible,  that  the  young 
engineer  may  arrive  at  the  desired  goal  with  less  time  given  up  to  drudgery 
of  his  profession. 

The  chief  criticisms  of  the  young  mechanical  engineer,  fresh  from  college, 
seem  to  be : 

1 .  Ignorance  of  the  value  in  dollars  and  cents  of  engineering  mate- 
rials, and  how  to  estimate  the  cost  of  engineering  work. 

2.  A  tendency  to  be  too  theoretical,  and  not  to  give  due  weight  to 
the  commercial  side  of  the  problem.  He  forgets  that  the  added  cost  of 
making  a  machine  of  a  few  per  cent,  higher  efficiency  may  be  more  than 
the  capitalized  annual  saving  in  power  consumption  due  to  this  higher 
efficiency.  Manufacturers'  standards  mean  little  to  him,  and  yet  they  are 
all-important  to  the  experienced  designer. 

3.  An  inadequate  knowledge  of  fundamental  theory,  especially  as 
regards  pure  and  applied  mathematics  and  mechanics. 

4.  Insufficient  knowledge  of  engineering  practice.  This  applies  to 
practical  things  to  be  done  with  the  hands,  such  for  example,  as  what  to 
do  when  a  bearing  runs  hot ;  and  also  to  the  practical  calculation  of  en- 


176         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

gineering  problems,  such,  for  instance,  as  how  to  figure  the  characteristics 
of  a  centrifugal  pump  for  a  new  set  of  working  conditions. 

5.  A  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  English  language.  The  engineers  who 
are  quite  unable  to  write  a  good  engineering  report  are  all  too  many. 
And  sadder  still  is  the  fact  that  many  young  engineers  cannot  even  write 
a  grammatical  letter. 

On  the  other  hand,  can  the  engineering  college  be  expected  to  give 
sufficient  training  in  shop  work  and  practical  engineering  methods?  Ob- 
viously it  cannot.  Not  even  the  great  northern  and  western  colleges,  with 
endowment  funds  of  vastly  more  than  "three  million  dollars,"  can  afford 
the  large  and  expensive  machinery,  nor  could  they  keep  up  with  the  rapid 
changes  and  improvements  even  if  they  once  had  this  machinery.  And  too 
something  more  must  be  learned  than  mere  familiarity  with  this  and  that 
type  of  machine.  One  must  rub  elbows  with  the  mechanic  and  eat  from  the 
same  dinner  pail  to  reap  the  full  benefits  of  the  democracy  of  the  flannel 
shirt. 

It  would  seem  then  that  some  middle  ground  must  be  found.  Cer- 
tainly there  is  room  for  improvement  in  the  teaching  of  theory  and  its 
practical  application  to  engineering  problems.  As  regards  shop  work,  would 
it  not  be  better  to  let  it  be  clearly  understood  that  the  college  makes  no 
attempt  to  educate  the  engineer  along  these  practical  lines  ?  Let  us  tell  the 
prospective  young  student  of  mechanical  engineering,  frankly,  that  he  will 
receive  only  the  theoretical  side  of  his  training  at  college  and  that  he  must, 
after  graduation,  devote  several  years  to  learning  practical  things  in  some 
large  machine  shop,  power  house,  or  factory.  Then  reduce  the  amount  of 
time  that  the  student  must  spend  in  the  college  shops  to  a  minimum.  Use 
the  machinery  only  to  illustrate  the  application  of  the  theory.  Give  the 
student  every  minute  of  time  possible  to  work  on  fundamental  theory ;  for  a 
man  can  do  only  so  much  in  a  day,  whether  that  work  be  done  by  his  hands 
or  with  his  brain.  There  is  no  use  in  his  learning  to  be  an  expert  lathe  hand 
in  the  college  shops,  for  he  may  have  to  go  all  through  it  again  on  a  bigger 
and  better  lathe.  If  he  learns  this  work  at  college  he  neglects  his  theory, 
which  he  will  find  it  vastly  harder  to  learn  in  the  years  that  follow  his  gradua- 
tion. Four  years  are  little  enough  to  learn  even  the  fundamental  theory, 
especially  when  each  college  year  is  only  some  eight  months  long. 

But  these  are  all  grave  questions.  They  are  perplexing.  Engineers 
doubtless  differ  regarding  them.  They  require  deep  study.  Changes  in 
existing  methods  of  instruction  should  be  approached  carefully,  and  with  a 
full  knowledge  of  modern  engineering  practice  and  what  will  be  required  of 
the  young  engineer.  How  then  can  the  college  professor  be  expected  to 
answer  these  questions  and  plan  the  courses  of  study  without  the  continual 
cooperation  and  assistance  of  the  practicing  engineer  ? 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  177 

An  Engineering  Council,  to  act  in  an  advisory  capacity  and  composed 
of  some  ten  members  chosen  from  the  engineering  alumni,  has  been  pro- 
posed. Surely  such  a  council  would  be  of  inestimable  assistance  to  the 
engineering  faculty,  and  aid  them  to  shape  the  courses  of  instruction  so  as 
to  best  meet  the  difficulties  that  have  been  pointed  out. 

As  loyal  alumni  we  have  given  of  our  means  to  the  endowment  fund, 
every  cent  that  we  could  afford,  but  every  one  of  us  would  like  to  have  given 
more,  had  he  been  able.  Here  then  is  an  opportunity  to  give  of  our  time  and 
our  brains.  The  Council  will  be  of  little  value  unless  its  members  give  it 
their  best  thought  and  are  willing  to  sacrifice  ample  time  to  it.  Those  who 
are  not  on  the  Council,  too,  can  be  of  assistance  by  answering  intelligently 
and  promptly  the  questions  that  the  Council  will  doubtless  put  to  them. 

Our  beloved  Alma  Mater  asks  us,  through  her  engineering  faculty, 
to  help  her.  Let  us  welcome  the  opportunity.  Let  us  have  the  Engineering 
Council. 

THE  ELECTRICAL  ENGINEER'S  POINT  OF  VIEW 
By  Matthew  Orpheus  Troy,  '96,  B.S.,  of  Pittsfield,  Mass. 

I  have  been  requested  by  the  Dean  to  discuss  the  above  topic  from  the 
point  of  view  of  the  Electrical  Engineer. 

After  an  experience  of  twenty-four  years  with  one  of  the  largest  electri- 
cal manufacturing  organizations  in  the  world,  I  am  convinced  that  the 
electrical  graduate  in  the  practice  of  his  profession  can  be  of  great  assistance 
to  his  Alma  Mater  and  to  the  undergraduate  body,  and  that  such  assistance 
should  be  rendered.  Before  taking  up  more  in  detail  the  questions  of  how 
this  may  best  be  accomplished  through  an  Engineering  Alumni  Council,  it 
may  first  be  well  to  outline  the  kinds  of  work  which  the  modern  engineering 
graduate  may  be  called  upon  to  perform,  and  in  that  way  see  just  what 
it  is  he  should  expect  from  his  college  course  in  preparation  for  his  life 
work. 

Without  attempting  to  draw  a  definite  parallel  between  the  electrical 
profession  and  any  other,  it  has  been  my  observation  that  the  electrical 
graduate  has  a  very  limited  choice  of  paths  from  his  Alma  Mater  to  the  first 
step  of  his  business  career,  even  though  the  path  he  may  choose  ultimately 
branches  in  every  direction,  and  affords  a  tremendous  range  of  application — 
a  range  which  is  constantly  expanding. 

A  very  high  percentage  of  each  year's  electrical  graduates  head  at  once 
towards  the  larger  electrical  manufacturing  organizations,  or  as  is  more 
probable  towards  one  of  the  two  American  organizations  that  substantially 
cover  the  entire  field  of  electrical  apparatus  manufactured  in  the  United 
States.     Other  paths  lead  to  the  large  telephone  or  telegraph  interests;  to 


178         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

the  operating  companies ;  to  the  syndicates  combining  or  controlling  these 
companies;  or  to  the  large  management,  engineering,  or  operating  associa- 
tions, of  which  there  are  quite  a  number. 

Initially,  therefore,  he  does  not  have  a  wide  choice  as  to  how  he  will 
direct  his  steps  upon  graduation.  After  having  become  a  part  of  a  large 
organization,  however,  the  path  which  he  pursues,  either  through  choice  or 
force  of  circumstances,  is  one  of  a  vast  number  to  which,  each  year,  are 
added  many  others,  and  I  can  probably  be  most  helpful  in  tracing  a  few  of 
these  paths  in  a  large  manufacturing  company  like  the  one  with  which  I  am 
associated. 

Assume  that  the  graduate  has  applied  for  entrance  to  the  testing  de- 
partment of  an  electrical  manufacturer  and  been  accepted.  Here  the 
student  engineer,  so-called,  is  given  an  experience  of  from  six  to  eighteen 
months  in  the  testing  and  inspecting  of  machines,  apparatus,  and  appliances 
of  every  description.  If  the  demand  for  men  is  great  his  career  in  the  testing 
department  may  be  cut  to  six  months.  If,  however,  he  is  to  obtain  a  reason- 
ably broad  experience  his  stay  may  be  extended  to  the  full  eighteen  months. 
A  year,  however,  is  a  fair  average. 

Twenty  years  ago,  if  a  man  were  shifted  at  reasonable  intervals,  he 
could  in  a  year  obtain  through  his  testing  experience  quite  a  comprehensive 
idea  of  the  product  of  the  manufacturer — the  details  of  construction,  as 
well  as  methods  of  testing  and  operation.  To-day,  whether  he  stay  in  the 
testing  department  one  or  two  years,  he  can  only  obtain  an  experience 
touching  upon  a  few  of  the  more  important  lines  of  manufacture,  and  it  is 
not  improbable  that  even  then,  before  he  completes  his  work  some  of  the 
lines  which  he  tested  earlier  in  his  course  will  have  been  superseded  by  a 
new  product,  embracing  new  developments  and  new  ideas. 

A  new  catalogue  recently  issued  by  the  General  Electric  Co.,  which 
only  covers  certain  of  its  more  standardized  product,  contains  over  twenty 
thousand  catalogue  numbers,  and  this  omits  much  of  the  Company's  prod- 
uct. Over  this  great  diversity  of  product  the  graduate's  testing  experience 
is  well  directed  towards  that  which  will  be  most  useful  to  him  in  his  future 
work. 

From  his  testing  course  the  graduate  will  probably  go  to  a  designing- 
engineering,  a  commercial-engineering,  or  a  research  department — in  most 
instances  direct  to  the  designing-engineering  department,  where  again  his 
path  may  branch  in  one  of  many  directions. 

There  are  a  great  number  of  designing-engineering  departments,  and 
he  may  from  choice  or  necessity  go  into  any  of  them.  The  field  is  too  broad 
and  life  is  too  short  to  cover  many  of  them — the  probabilities  are  that  his 
experience  will  be  limited  to  one,  at  the  outside  two.  At  this  point  the 
engineer  may  become  a  highly  specialized  designer,  carrying  on  developmen- 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         179 

tal  or  specific  research  work ;  may  remain  with  the  department  in  some  more 
or  less  subordinate  position ;  or  may  go  to  the  head  of  it  in  an  administrative 
capacity,  which  calls  for  ability  to  direct  men,  design,  developmental,  and 
research  work  in  the  lines  for  which  he  is  responsible. 

Instead  of  remaining  with  a  designing-engineering  department  he  may 
transfer  to  what  is  called  a  commercial-engineering  department,  of  which 
there  are  a  large  number.  These  are  departments  which  are  intermediate 
between  the  designing  and  general  office  selling  organizations.  They  help 
the  commercial  organization  in  the  selection  of  equipment,  or  combination 
of  apparatus  best  suited  to  the  proposition  in  hand,  or  they  assist  the  de- 
signing engineering  department  in  changing  its  design  to  suit  either  general 
or  specific  commercial  requirements  of  specific  propositions. 

In  some  instances  the  commercial  engineering  work  of  a  given  depart- 
ment is  combined  directly  with  the  sales  proposition  work,  and  there  is  no 
clean-cut  line  of  demarcation  between  the  proposition  work  and  the  com- 
mercial engineering  relating  thereto.  Important  commercial  sections  are 
usually  under  the  direction  of  highly  trained  technical  graduates,  or  at  least 
under  men  who  through  broad  experience  have  developed  into  broad  gauge 
commercial  engineers.  Not  infrequently  these  large  commercial  depart- 
ments, in  addition  to  a  commercial  engineering  department  have,  as  a  part 
of  their  staff,  consulting  engineers,  to  whom  both  the  proposition  men  and 
the  commercial  engineering  men  refer. 

If  the  technical  graduate  leaves  the  designing  engineering  department, 
he  may  take  up  general  commercial  work  along  any  of  the  lines  described. 
He  may  be  fond  of  travel — a  broader  contact  with  the  outside,  or  for  various 
reasons  wish  to  enter  the  outside  organization,  or  it  may  be  to  the  company's 
interest  to  send  him  there.  Many  take  this  path,  and  become  a  part  of  one 
of  the  various  district  office  organizations.  He  may  go  direct  from  the 
designing  engineering,  commercial  engineering,  or  general  commercial  de- 
partments to  the  district  offices,  and  there  be  assigned  to  the  engineering, 
sales,  or  administrative  department  of  the  District. 

The  electrical  salesman  of  to-day  is  in  a  different  category  from  the 
electrical  salesman  of  twenty  years  ago,  and  in  a  very  different  category 
from  what  we  generally  mean  by  the  term  "salesman."  He  is  either  a  man 
of  very  specialized  training — what  we  term  a  "specialist";  or  he  is  a  very 
broadly  trained  commercial  engineer,  capable  of  analyzing  and  studying 
the  conditions  on  a  large  transmission  system,  and  should  be  in  a  position 
to  advise  the  engineer  of  an  operating  company  as  to  the  best  selection, 
combination,  or  application  of  apparatus,  appliances,  etc.  He  should  be 
more  properly  called  either  an  "engineering  specialist "  or  a  "sales  engineer." 
His  foundation  is  his  technical  training  and  engineering  experience,  but  his 
success  is  measured  by  many  other  qualities,  such  as  initiative,  forcefulness, 


i8o         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

personality,  his  knowledge  of  people,  his  ability  to  assume  responsibilities, 
his  knowledge  of  psychology,  his  ability  to  make  wise  engineering  decisions, 
and  to  convince  others  of  their  soundness. 

It  is  a  field  of  endeavor  to  which  many  graduates  aspire,  in  which  they 
succeed,  and  find  much  real  enjoyment  in  their  work.  After  this  experience 
they  may  later  become  department  heads  in  the  District  Offices  to  direct  the 
efforts  of  other  sales  engineers,  or  may  be  put  in  charge  of  important  offices 
where  they  have  large  numbers  of  men  under  them,  direct  their  efforts,  and 
become  responsible  for  the  success  of  that  office  in  a  given  teiritory  or 
district. 

In  the  foregoing  I  have  traced  a  few  of  the  paths  more  ordinarily  pur- 
sued. There  are  others  too  numerous  to  mention.  Some  of  them  lead  to 
the  great  research  departments  of  manufacturing  organizations  where 
specialization  is  carried  to  the  extreme,  and  work  is  taken  up  and  carried 
beyond  the  point  where  all  other  investigators  have  stopped.  They  pry  into 
unexplored  fields,  and  delve  into  unfathomed  depths.  It  may  be  the  elec- 
trical engineer,  the  chemist,  or  the  physicist  who  carried  on  the  work. 

The  graduate  may  enter  one  of  the  large  manufacturing  or  production 
departments,  find  that  he  is  particularly  fitted  for  this  work,  and  ultimately 
become  a  manufacturing  superintendent  or  a  production  manager  handling 
large  organizations  and  an  output  that  runs  into  many  millions  of  dollars. 

He  may  choose  other  paths  that  lead  into  the  general  administrative 
offices  of  the  company,  assist  the  president  or  vice-presidents  of  the  organi- 
zation, with  possibilities  in  this  direction  limited  only  by  his  own  resoiu-ces. 

This  aeroplane  view  of  a  large  manufacturing  organization  has  been 
expanded  for  a  particular  purpose.  I  wish  to  leave  the  inference  that  the 
work  which  will  open  out  before  the  graduate  is  so  tremendous  in  its  magni- 
tude and  scope  that  no  one  mind  can  grasp  it  all,  nor  can  any  college  curricu- 
lum cover  the  field.  The  curriculum  can  but  lay  the  foundation  on  which 
the  superstructure  is  built,  and  the  superstructure  in  the  career  of  each 
individual  is  most  apt  to  differ  from  that  of  every  other.  There  may  at 
times  be  striking  points  of  similarity,  but  the  structures  differ  as  individuals 
differ,  and  it  is  very  apparent  in  most  instances  that  the  individual's  ideals 
and  abilities  form  a  very  important  part  in  creating  the  superstructure; 
furthermore,  the  superstructure  is  never  finished.  It  begins  when  the  in- 
dividual enters  the  organization,  and  continues  to  the  end.  There  is  no 
stopping  point  except  as  enforced  by  the  limitations  of  the  individual.  This 
is  true  even  where  the  individual  picks  out  a  particular  line  of  specialization 
and  adheres  to  it.  The  work  grows,  develops  under  him,  he  expands  with 
it,  and  adapts  himself  to  the  changing  conditions  of  the  country  and  the  art. 

One  point  I  wish  to  emphasize  particularly  is  that  in  a  large  manu- 
facturing organization  these  paths  are  not  charted  in  advance,  except  in  a 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         i8i 

most  general  way,  and  the  individual  graduate  from  the  time  of  his  entrance 
into  the  organization  becomes  a  keen  competitor  of  all  his  fellow  graduates. 
Even  though  all  might  be  progressive,  some  will  progress  more  rapidly  than 
others,  and  the  extent  to  which  one  rises  or  forges  ahead  depends  largely 
upon  his  resourcefulness,  initiative,  and  all  those  qualities  which  go  to  make 
for  leadership.  This  is  a  very  happy  condition  because  it  makes  work  in- 
teresting, one  sees  achievement  and  possibilities  ahead  of  him,  and  strives 
constantly  to  add  to-day  to  the  achievements  of  yesterday. 

In  the  future  of  the  industry  with  which  the  electrical  graduate  asso- 
ciates himself,  no  part  of  the  work  is  more  important  than  the  research  work, 
even  though  the  research  effort  departs  widely  from  what  is  commonly 
known  as  electrical  engineering.  Many  of  the  greatest  advances  and  note- 
worthy achievements  are  the  work  of  the  great  research  departments  asso- 
ciated with  the  large  manufacturing  institutions.  The  work  of  these  large 
research  departments  is  in  a  measure  distinct  from  the  more  specific  research 
work  carried  on  daily  in  engineering  and  developmental  sections  or  depart- 
ments of  the  company. 

We  find  a  very  striking  analogy  between  all  this  and  what  is  being 
accomplished  in  medicine.  One  has  but  to  compare  the  work  of  the  general 
practitioner,  specialists  in  medicine  and  surgery,  and  the  great  research 
departments  of  organizations  that  have  given  us  our  serums  and  anti-toxins 
to  obtain  a  picture  of  what  is  going  on  in  the  large  electrical  organizations. 
The  latter  has  its  general  engineers,  its  special  engineers  assigned  to  specific 
problems,  its  research  work  carried  on  in  connection  with  these  specific 
problems,  and  in  addition  its  large  research  organization  which  goes  into 
general  problems  of  every  description,  and  from  year  to  year  accomplishes 
almost  the  impossible,  often  discovering  new  truths  which  contradict  the 
facts  of  the  past  as  we  supposed  them  to  be. 

Dr.  W.  R.  Whitney,  Director  of  the  Research  Laboratory  of  the  Gen- 
eral Electric  Co.,  has  written  many  able  articles  bearing  on  this  topic,  and 
these  articles  are  available  for  reference.  A  footnote  is  appended  giving 
some  of  them.  ^  I  cannot  refrain,  however,  from  quoting  a  few  extracts  from 
his  address — "Incidents  of  Applied  Research."  The  diversity  of  research 
work  in  a  large  manufacturing  organization  is  summed  up  as  follows : 

"The  varied  interests  of  the  General  Electric  Company  made  com- 
plex intercooperation  possible  between  widely  diversified  needs  and 

'  "  Incidents  of  Applied  Research, "  Journal  of  Industrial  and  Engineering  Chemistry,  vol.  viii., 
No.  6,  page  559,  June,  1916;  "American  Engineering  Research,"  presented  at  342d  meeting  of 
American  Institute  of  Electrical  Engineers,  Phila.,  Dec.  13,  1918;  "Research  as  a  National  Duty, " 
Journal  of  Industrial  and  Engineering  Chemistry,  vol.  viii.,  No.  6,  page  533,  June,  1916;  "The 
Newlands  Bill  and  National  Research, "  Metallurgical  and  Chemical  Engineering,  vol.  xiv..  No.  11, 
June  1, 1916;  "What  is  Needed  to  DevelopGood  Research  Workers,  "£/ec/ncoZ  World,]nn&  17, 1920. 


1 82         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

equally  diversified  lines  of  knowledge,  and  I  find  on  a  rough  survey  that 
we  have  worked  in  some  way  on  such  a  long  list  of  subjects  that  even  the 
list  itself  is  tiresome.  It  extends  from  paints,  oil  and  varnishes,  to  irons, 
steels  and  alloys ;  from  the  production  of  copper  and  zinc  to  molybdenum 
and  magnesium ;  from  thermions  in  pliotrons  to  X-rays  in  beetles ;  from 
carbon  and  tungsten  incandescents  to  luminous  arcs  and  searchlights; 
from  the  mica  in  the  commutator  of  a  railway  motor  and  the  brush  that 
wears  it  away,  to  the  electric  solder  on  the  bars  and  the  insulation  on  the 
wires ;  from  the  composition  of  the  turbine  blade  to  the  corrosive  action  of 
the  boiler  feed  water ;  from  atomic  hydrogen  in  lamps  to  molecular  layers 
in  catalyzers;  from  silicon  in  transformer  iron  to  silica  in  fuse-fillers;  in 
elements  from  lithium  and  boron  to  uranium  and  thorium;  in  substitutes 
for  rubber  and  for  platinum,  in  the  insulating  body  of  the  aero  mag- 
neto, and  the  contact  of  the  automobile  vibrator;  from  "Sheradizing  to 
Calorizing";  and  from  condenser  and  boiler  tubes  to  special  pyrometer 
tubes;  and  always  through  prosaic  past  experience,  to  the  exciting  new 
outcome. 

"Through  all  I  see  the  same  interesting  fact.  It  is  the  desired  un- 
foreseen which  frequently  eventuates,  and  our  constant  need  is  for  faith 
that  this  will  happen  again.  The  regularity  with  which  we  conclude  that 
further  advances  in  a  particular  field  are  impossible  seems  equaled  only 
by  the  regularity  with  which  events  prove  that  we  are  of  too  limited  vision. 
And  it  seems  always  to  be  those  who  have  the  fullest  opportunity  to  know 
who  are  the  most  limited  in  view.  What,  then,  is  the  trouble?  I  think 
that  one  answer  should  be :  we  do  not  realize  sufficiently  that  the  unknown 
is  absolutely  infinite  and  that  new  knowledge  is  always  being  produced. 
The  thing  which  has  been  impossible  will  be  accomplished  by  new  knowl- 
edge which  cannot  now  be  accurately  preinventoried." 

Looking  back  on  my  own  experience  among  the  vicissitudes  and  worries 
of  the  undergraduate,  the  two  things  which  were  uppermost  in  my  mind 
were — first,  the  question  expressed  in  the  old  song — Where  Do  We  Go  From 
Here,  Boys  ?  My  future  was  a  great  unknown.  I  hoped  to  arrive  some- 
where, but  I  had  not  the  slightest  conception  where  the  path  would  take  me. 
The  second  great  worry  was  somewhat  associated  with  the  first.  Not  know- 
ing what  I  was  to  do  I  had  no  way  of  judging  which  of  the  great  mass  of 
detail  in  my  curriculum  was  most  important  in  the  work  I  was  later  to 
pursue,  and  I  know  now  that  I  laboriously  tried  to  master  many  details 
subsequently  proven  to  be  unimportant  and  I  passed  over  others  of  basic 
importance. 

While  there  are  many  ways  in  which  an  engineering  council,  made  up  of 
graduates  in  service,  can  assist  Alma  Mater  and  the  undergraduate,  I  can, 
speaking  for  the  electrical  graduate  only,  say  that  if  it  does  no  more  than 
assist  the  undergraduate  in  the  two  ways  mentioned,  i.e. ,  in  guiding  his  steps 
after  graduation  toward  the  path  he  is  best  suited  to  follow,  and  in  giving 
him  an  idea  of  what  is  vital  in  his  undergraduate  course,  it  will  accompHsh 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  183 

much  for  the  undergraduate  engineer,  stimulate  interest  in  electrical  en- 
gineering, and  thereby  assist  its  Alma  Mater. 

Under  the  conditions  of  to-day,  an  engineering  council  could  offer  very 
definite  suggestions  to  the  prospective  student,  the  freshman  or  the  senior, 
as  to  the  path  to  choose  after  graduation,  or  at  least  a  very  definite  choice  of 
paths,  and  thus  having  something  definite  before  him,  the  student  will  take 
up  his  engineering  studies  with  an  added  interest.  As  bearing  on  this  point 
I  quote  from  an  address  by  Dr.  Whitney  at  an  Alumni  Dinner  given  by 
Union  College,  February  17,  192 1 : 

"I  beHeve  that  our  high  school  graduates  are  already  in  mental 
position  to  appreciate  more  interesting  and  modern  matters  than  they 
often  get  in  college.  Most  of  them,  when  they  enter  college,  want  to  learn 
to  be  useful.  Those  who  may  enter  merely  to  play  or  kill  time,  should  be 
discouraged,  but  few  colleges  ever  do  this.  One  which  does  will  probably 
become  a  good  school.  Most  freshmen  have  reached  the  period  when 
they  want  to  do  something,  rather  than  hear  anybody  ! 

"The  advantages  of  doing,  and  the  new  fields  in  which  something 
useful  may  be  done,  are  enormously  attractive  and  numerous  to-day,  and 
boys  know  it.  Perhaps  at  one  time,  long  ago,  the  accumulation  of  learn- 
ing was  so  small  that  a  student  could  easily  cover  many  subjects,  but 
nowadays  he  can  seldom  acquire  a  complete  understanding  of  any  modern 
subject  from  college  teaching — he  can  only  start.  If  he  learns  to  appre- 
ciate one  half  the  new  literature  of  a  subject,  he  does  well.  I  refer  par- 
ticularly now  to  the  natural  sciences,  where,  during  the  past  century,  the 
growth  has  been  very  rapid. 

"Let  me  give  a  few  illustrations.  In  physics,  as  taught  in  most 
colleges,  the  student  gets  but  little  more  than  the  elementary  course 
common  thirty  years  ago.  But  physics  is  a  growing,  modern  science, 
and  has  much  of  help  for  doctor,  lawyer,  or  professional  men  in  any  field. 
His  knowledge  of  energy,  wave  motion,  electrical  phenomena,  etc.,  the 
schoolboy  is  probably  not  learning  in  his  physics  class,  but  through  play 
with  his  wireless  set.  His  interest  in  mechanics  is  probably  coming  to 
him  by  the  way  of  his  automobile  engine. 

"The  modern  elements  of  chemistry  and  physics,  as  modified  by  the 
revolutionary  discoveries  of  radium,  the  decomposition,  limitation,  and 
structure  of  elements,  he  is  apt  to  learn  first  from  some  interest  in  his 
luminous  IngersoU  watch,  or  through  a  newspaper  story  about  Madame 
Curie.  He  can  scarcely  get  far  enough  in  chemistry  at  the  present  rate  to 
feel  the  exhilaration  of  making  a  little  synthetic  dye  stuff  or  an  explosive, 
or  to  appreciate  the  value  of  a  microscope  for  studying  the  wonders  of 
new  steels  or  of  living  cells.  Biology  is  just  another  'ology'  to  him.  If 
he  wishes  to  become  a  doctor  or  a  surgeon,  he  must  wait  years,  while 
Ustening  to  matters  he  feels  he  knew  at  high  school,  before  he  can  experi- 
ment on  any  of  the  wonders  of  the  blood,  or  take  part  in,  or  even  see,  an 
experiment  in  psychology  or  in  plant  or  animal  heredity.  Just  at  the 
period  when  he  would  be  most  affected  by  contact  with  real  things,  he  is 
often  forced  to  acquire  habits  of  passivity. 


1 84         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

"It  is  natural  that  a  suppressed  American  lad  should  break  out 
somewhere,  and  this  in  part  explains  the  stress  on  American  college  sports 
compared  to  that  in  all  other  countries.  The  past  has  shown  us  that  the 
early  years  of  our  lives  are  apt  to  be  the  most  productive.  Pasteur  and 
Lister,  Faraday  and  Henry,  Darwin  and  Huxley,  and  countless  other 
known  leaders,  were  well  along  in  successful,  enjoyable  and  productive 
life  courses,  when  they  became  of  age.  Can  we  do  nothing  to  make  more 
valuable  the  important  years  spent  at  our  local  college?  At  a  time  when 
it  ought  to  be  possible  to  continue  the  natural  interest  of  youth  in  things, 
we  are  failing.  It  is  a  standard  student  joke  to  say,  '  Don't  let  your  studies 
interfere  with  your  education, '  and  therein  lies  the  explanation  of  the  fact 
that  America  is  not  yet  famed  for  its  scientific  productivity." 

Referring  to  the  second  of  my  worries  as  a  student,  I  fear  that  the  first 
part  of  my  paper  offers  no  solution,  as  it  emphasizes,  even  more  than  does 
the  diversity  of  a  college  curriculum,  the  wide  field  to  which  the  graduate 
may  in  future  life  be  expected  to  apply  himself,  and  emphasizes  the  im- 
possibility of  complete  preparation.  This  is  true.  The  curriculum  can  at 
most  merely  lay  the  foundation,  and  all  of  the  superstructure  has  to  be 
erected  in  subsequent  effort,  application,  work,  and  study,  but  it  is  of  great- 
est importance  that  the  foundation  be  the  best  which  can  be  devised  for  the 
superstructure  which  the  graduate  is  to  build  for  himself. 

The  graduate  who  has  been  away  from  college  for  many  years  is  not  an 
authority  on  textbooks,  curriculums,  etc.,  but  he  should  be  in  a  position  to 
help  the  University's  staff,  if  only  indirectly,  by  bringing  to  its  attention 
from  time  to  time  some  of  the  everyday  problems  which  face  him  in  his 
outside  career.  I  will  not  attempt  to  discuss  this  phase  of  the  subject  in 
great  detail,  but  in  looking  over  the  present  day  curriculums  they  are  spread 
out  too  thin  in  many  places,  and  the  foundation  is  not  deep  and  thorough 
enough  in  others. 

I  am  constantly  in  contact  with  electrical  graduates,  and  without  having 
University  of  Virginia  graduates  in  mind,  I  am  impressed  by  the  fact  that 
very  few  of  them  really  learn  their  mathematics,  physics,  and  chemistry. 
When  they  have  struggled  through  their  mathematics,  and  passed  their 
examinations  by  a  narrow  margin,  possibly  having  learned  enough  to  appre- 
ciate its  importance,  they  have  a  feeling  that  they  will  pursue  the  subject 
further,  and  will  then  perfect  themselves.  The  majority  never  do ;  and  there 
is  a  tendency  in  after  life  to  sidestep  difficult  problems  involving  mathe- 
matics, or  to  look  for  assistance  to  those  who  have  been  more  thorough. 
They  trail  rather  than  lead  in  this  respect,  though  they  may  in  other  direc- 
tions make  up  their  shortcomings.  A  student  who  has  thoroughly  learned 
his  mathematics  has  a  foundation  which  need  not  be  disturbed,  irrespective 
of  what  is  new  in  electrical  discoveries — at  most  only  the  application  has 
to  be  changed. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  185 

When  a  student  has  obtained  his  basic  training  in  mathematics,  the 
application  of  this  training  to  problems  of  various  descriptions — such  as 
the  solution  of  electrical  equations  and  the  actual  design  of  electrical  appara- 
tus— serves  to  fix  in  his  mind  his  mathematical  fundamentals  so  that  they 
cannot  be  effaced.  A  basic  training  in  chemistry  and  physics  is  of  equal 
importance,  but  in  order  that  these  fundamentals,  like  the  mathematics, 
may  become  firmly  fixed,  or  for  that  matter  thoroughly  understood,  the 
laboratory  work  is  of  the  utmost  importance.  By  this  I  refer  to  the  experi- 
mental work  in  the  chemical,  physical,  and  electrical  laboratories. 

Very  few  electrical  graduates  have  occasion  to  apply  any  of  the  training 
they  may  have  received  in  civil  engineering,  except  in  the  fundamentals, 
particularly  the  details  that  cover  the  use  of  instruments,  transit,  etc.  He 
may  in  his  work  with  a  large  operator  find  that  some  civil  engineering  has 
to  be  done,  but  he  is  not  called  upon  to  undertake  such  work.  A  graduate 
civil  engineer  is  available  for  the  purpose. 

The  same  is  true,  though  to  a  somewhat  less  extent,  of  large  hydraulic 
projects.  While  a  general  knowledge  of  these  subjects  is  necessary,  it  would 
appear  in  the  case  of  the  electrical  engineer  that  they  could  be  touched  on 
lightly,  and  more  time  given  to  fundamental  electrical  problems. 

Knowledge  of  thermo-dynamics  and  steam  engineering  is  frequently 
of  use  to  the  electrical  graduate,  but  it  is  doubtful  if  much  time  should  be 
devoted  to  obsolete  steam  engines,  intricate  valve  motions,  and  mechanical 
features  that  have  outlived  their  day  of  usefulness.  A  more  intimate  and 
thorough  study  of  a  representative  steam  turbine  makes  for  a  better  founda- 
tion. 

In  industrial  chemistry,  instead  of  trying  to  cover  a  field  of  almost 
unlimited  breadth,  let  the  technical  graduate  concentrate  and  learn  more 
thoroughly  the  industrial  chemistry  of  what  will  be  most  useful  to  him ;  the 
manufacture  and  preparation  of  insulations — their  qualities  and  charac- 
teristics; insulating  compounds — their  behavior  under  the  action  of  heat, 
oil,  and  electrical  stresses;  study  of  oils  for  insulation  purposes  and  heat 
dissipation ;  study  of  porcelains,  glass,  and  other  similar  materials  for  their 
mechanical  and  electrical  properties,  as  they  relate  to  the  development  of 
electrical  apparatus,  and  the  development  of  transmission  and  distribution 
systems. 

All  education  is  broadening  and  develops  the  mind,  and  on  this  score 
we  can  defend  the  study  of  a  great  variety  of  subjects,  as  a  part  of  the  train- 
ing of  the  electrical  engineer.  There  is  so  much,  however,  that  he  should 
obtain  in  his  four-year  course — in  fact  so  much  more  than  he  can  obtain  of 
basic  fundamental  facts,  that  are  directly  applicable  to  electrical  engineer- 
ing, that  it  would  seem  to  me  the  present  day  curriculums  could  be  improved 
with  this  thought  in  view. 


1 86         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

While  many  of  the  topics  above  touched  upon  might  be  classified  as 
encyclopaedical  training,  they  cover  interesting  details,  apparatus,  subjects 
and  applications  which  might  profitably  form  parallel  reading  to  the  Uni- 
versity course,  but  should  not  be  allowed  to  crowd  out  fundamental  training 
or  fundamental  training  plus  the  essentials  of  a  direct  professional  training. 

In  closing  I  would  emphasize  that  this  is  a  day  of  specialists,  whether 
it  be  in  finance,  business,  manufacture,  medicine  or  engineering.  The  man 
who  stands  out  above  others  in  some  particular  field  of  endeavor  obtains  a 
satisfaction  from  his  work,  a  standing  and  remuneration  from  his  profession 
which  the  general  all  around  good  man  infrequently  receives. 

Let  the  engineering  undergraduate  pursue  fewer  subjects,  but  pursue 
them  thoroughly,  and  if  possible  specialize  in  some  particular  field  of  en- 
deavor, either  research,  or  the  design  of  a  special  class  of  apparatus.  The 
man  who  thoroughly  masters  the  transformer  diagram,  the  mathematics 
relating  to  all  the  formulas  involved  in  the  design,  who  knows  the  design 
thoroughly,  who  can  analyze  wave  form  and  study  the  stresses  applied  in 
service  to  every  piece  of  insulation  under  the  diversity  of  conditions  to  which 
the  transformer  will  be  subjected,  can  readily  take  up  the  induction  motor 
and  study  it  in  the  same  way,  although  he  did  not  have  time  to  do  so  at 
college.  It  would  be  better  for  him  in  future  life  to  have  mastered  the  trans- 
former thoroughly  than  to  have  obtained  a  superficial  knowledge  of  both 
the  transformer  and  the  motor,  even  though  later  he  specialize  in  motor 
design. 

The  technical  student  who  will  learn  thoroughly  how  to  design  a  200,000 
volt  transmission  line,  understand  the  phenomena  which  go  on  in  such  a 
system— the  high  voltage  stresses,  corona  losses,  behavior  under  impulses  of 
every  description,  steep  wave  fronts,  high  frequency  line  disturbances ;  who 
will  learn  how  to  analyze  the  stresses  over  its  insulators — the  reactance, 
capacity  and  induction  of  the  lines — its  regulation  and  compensation,  has 
placed  himself  in  a  position  to  obtain  recognition  which  cannot  be  obtained 
by  the  student  who  has  a  superficial  knowledge  of  wiring  and  distribution 
in  general. 

THE  CHEMICAL  ENGINEER'S  POINT  OF  VIEW 
By  John  Marshall,  '13,  Chem.  E.,  of  Swarthmore,  Pa. 

Mr.  Thornton  has  asked  me  to  discuss  from  the  standpoint  of  the 
Chemical  Engineer  the  organization  of  an  Alumni  Council  which  would 
presumably  be  advisory  to  the  Faculty  of  the  Engineering  Department  of 
the  University  in  the  outlining  of  courses  of  instruction.  Such  a  subject  as 
this  at  first  resolves  itself  into  a  discussion  of  the  necessity  for  the  organiza- 
tion of  this  Council.     Certainly  it  would  have  no  excuse  for  existence  unless 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         187 

deficiencies  existed  in  the  present  courses  of  instruction  which  are  within 
the  power  of  the  Alumni  to  assist  in  remedying.  I  wish,  therefore,  to  con- 
fine myself  to  a  discussion  of  the  advisability  of  establishing  this  Council. 

With  my  present  ignorance  of  the  courses  which  are  offered  now  in  the 
Chemical  Engineering  work  at  Virginia,  it  is  impossible  to  give  a  discussion 
of  the  subject  as  applied  to  Virginia  alone.  So  far  as  I  know,  the  work  here 
is  practically  the  same  as  that  offered  by  the  other  Engineering  schools  of 
the  country,  and  I  believe  that  the  Chemical  Engineering  graduates  of 
Virginia  are  on  an  equal  footing  as  regards  knowledge  and  ability  to  apply 
it  with  the  graduates  of  other  Engineering  schools. 

There  are,  however,  a  number  of  points  which  I  have  noticed  in  the 
Chemical  Engineers  I  have  seen  in  the  industry,  and  things  which  other 
chemists  and  Chemical  Engineers  have  told  me  which  I  believe  indicate  a 
lack  in  the  fundamental  training  given  men  of  this  profession. 

In  the  first  place  I  have  never  met  a  man  who  was  able  to  give  me  a 
good  definition  of  the  term  "Chemical  Engineer."  I  imagine  the  first  man 
to  call  himself  by  this  title  was  engaged  in  the  design  of  chemical  plants  and 
chemical  apparatus,  and  that  the  usual  course  in  the  subject  has  been  based 
upon  this  same  idea.  The  requirements  for  the  Chemical  Engineer  have 
expanded  mightily  since  that  time,  however,  and  to-day  I  suppose  that  only 
a  small  percentage  of  the  men  calling  themselves  Chemical  Engineers  are 
engaged  in  apparatus  design  alone. 

My  own  idea  at  present  of  what  should  constitute  a  Chemical  Engineer 
is  a  man  qualified  to  design  a  plant  for  a  chemical  process,  operate  the  plant, 
and  develop  the  process  economically,  but  I  would  not  venture  to  offer  this 
as  a  definition. 

It  is  certain,  however,  that  a  satisfactory  college  course  for  the  Chemical 
Engineer  cannot  be  designed  unless  we  have  arrived  at  a  sufficiently  broad 
definition  of  Chemical  Engineering ;  and  here  is  the  first  point  at  which  the 
Alumni  could  give  assistance,  because  from  their  direct  contact  with  the 
industry,  they  should  have  learned  first  hand  what  is  required  of  the  Chemi- 
cal Engineer. 

The  next  point  I  have  had  in  mind  is  linked  up  in  a  way  with  the  fore- 
going, and  has  to  do  mainly  with  the  method  in  which  the  colleges  bring 
home  to  the  student  the  real  nature  of  the  profession  he  is  studying.  Chemi- 
cal Engineering  is  a  relatively  new  profession,  and  the  courses  of  instruction 
in  it  are  in  the  main  the  result  of  selection  from  already  existing  courses 
offered  in  the  same  college.  As  a  result,  therefore,  we  have  Chemical  En- 
gineering taught  as  a  more  or  less  of  a  hodge-podge  of  Civil  Engineering, 
Electrical  Engineering,  Mechanical  Engineering,  and  Chemistry,  instead  of 
as  a  single  well-rounded  course  in  Chemical  Engineering  designed  to  meet 
the  needs  of  a  Chemical  Engineer.     Under  this  system,  the  men  taking  the 


1 88         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

work  axe  not  given  a  fair  chance  to  learn  what  is  the  nature  of  their  pro- 
fession and  what  will  be  expected  of  them  in  after  life. 

I  realize  that  this  condition  of  affairs  has  been  inevitable.  We  cannot 
justify  the  teaching  of  Chemical  Engineering  by  Chemical  Engineers  until 
-the  profession  has  assumed  sufficient  importance,  and  until  enough  men  are 
applying  for  Chemical  Engineering  training  to  justify  it.  But  I  do  believe 
that  constant  contact  of  the  Engineering  faculty  with  the  chemical  industry 
and  familiarity  of  the  faculty  with  the  needs  of  the  industry  as  brought  out 
by  that  contact  would  go  far  towards  overcoming  the  difficulty.  The  Alumni 
Council  would  present  an  obvious  means  by  which  this  contact  could  be 
brought  about. 

So  far  I  have  dealt  with  generalities,  and  perhaps  the  two  points  so  far 
raised  are  sufficient,  but  there  is  one  particular  phase  in  the  training  of 
Chemical  Engineers  that  I  feel  should  be  mentioned  as  being  particularly 
lacking.  To  my  mind  the  thing  the  Chemical  Engineer  needs  most,  and  the 
thing  that  he  apparently  gets  least,  is  ability  to  analyze  a  problem  or  a 
process  in  order  to  develop  the  proper  method  of  attack.  Perhaps  this  is 
just  another  way  of  saying  that  he  lacks  research  experience.  It  is  reason- 
able that  he  should  lack  this  experience,  for  his  time  is  sufficiently  filled  up 
while  in  college  with  all  the  other  things  he  must  study.  But,  nevertheless, 
it  is  all-important  that  he  get  this  abihty  from  his  college  work,  for  most  of 
his  success  in  after  years  will  depend  on  how  rapidly  he  can  reach  a  conclu- 
sion on  questions  of  change  in  process  or  apparatus,  and  the  rapidity  with 
which  he  reaches  the  conclusion  will  depend  directly  on  the  accuracy  with 
which  he  has  sized  up  his  problem  in  the  first  place. 

Inseparable  from  this  is  the  ability  to  analyze  costs.  Cost  is  the  final 
deciding  factor  of  any  chemical  operation,  and  yet,  in  spite  of  its  evident 
importance,  I  believe  I  have  never  seen  a  Chemical  Engineer,  or  for  that 
matter  a  graduate  chemist  of  any  description,  who  when  he  left  college  had 
any  knowledge  of  how  to  develop  a  problem  from  the  cost  standpoint.  Cost 
analysis  is  not  easy  under  any  circumstances,  and  on  a  plant  producing  many 
interdependent  products,  it  may  be  extremely  difficult,  but  the  successful 
Chemical  Engineer  will  have  to  learn  it  some  time.  If  he  can  learn  it  in 
college,  his  advancement  will  be  hastened  by  years. 

I  do  not  believe  that  ability  to  analyze  costs  can  be  gained  by  a  study 
of  accounting  methods,  but  I  do  believe  that  it  could  be  developed  in  a  well- 
designed  industrial  research  course  in  which  would  be  gained  research  ability 
as  well.  I  believe  the  Alumni  could  be  of  assistance  here,  in  helping  lay  out 
such  research  courses  and  in  selecting  problems. 

To  summarize  briefly,  it  appears  to  me  that  the  terms  Chemical  En- 
gineer and  Chemical  Engineering  have  been  too  vaguely  defined  in  the  past 
to  permit  the  most  logical  arrangement  of  college  work;  that  the  various 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  189 

subjects  taught  Chemical  Engineering  students  in  the  past  have  been  im- 
perfectly correlated;  and  training  in  research  and  cost  analysis  have  been 
slighted.  I  believe  the  Alumni  would  be  more  than  glad  to  give  any  assist- 
ance possible  in  overcoming  these  defects,  and  it  appears  to  me  that  the 
proposed  Alumni  Council  would  be  an  excellent  agency  through  which  this 
could  be  accomplished. 


V.    The  Collegiate  Alumni 

THE  ACADEMIC  SCHOOLS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA 
By  William  Harrison  Faulkner,  Ph.D. 

In  the  time  at  my  disposal,  it  is  naturally  impossible  to  give  anything 
like  a  history  of  a  century  of  development  in  the  academic  schools  of  the 
University.  Nor  can  I  consider  the  response  in  their  growth  to  external 
conditions.  I  must  limit  myself  to  discussing  what  seem  to  me  the  internal 
causes  affecting  this  development.  These  internal  causes  can  be  studied 
most  systematically  in  the  varying  requirements  for  graduation  and  degrees. 
From  this  standpoint  our  discussion  may  be  divided  into  five  periods,  viz. : 

1.  The  Period  of  Jeffersonian  Ideals,  1 825-1 831. 

2.  The  Period  of  the  Master  of  Arts  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  1831- 
1890. 

3.  The  Period  of  Transition,  1890- 1900. 

a.  To  the  Undergraduate  College. 

b.  To  the  Graduate  School. 

4.  The  Period  of  Full  Undergraduate  Growth  and  Development,  1900- 
1921. 

5.  The  Period  of  Future  Graduate  Growth,  1920- 

The  original  Enactments  of  the  Visitors,  written  by  Jefferson  and 
printed  in  1825  (before  the  faculty  had  been  installed),  are,  as  it  were,  the 
Jeffersonian  constitution  of  the  University,  under  which  its  great  founder 
expected  it  to  function  and  develop.  The  distinctive  and  even  revolution- 
ary characteristics  of  this  constitution  are,  first,  the  independence,  the 
autonomy,  of  the  individual  school;  second,  the  advanced  nature  and  the 
extensive  character  of  the  instruction  to  be  given ;  and  third,  the  freedom  of 
the  individual  student  to  select  any  course  or  courses  for  which  he  might  be 
prepared.  Under  this  constitution  the  University  was  a  federation  of  sover- 
eign and  allied  institutions  rather  than  a  single  organism.  In  matters  of 
discipline  only  and  in  the  conferring  of  diplomas  did  the  federal  law  take 
precedence  of  the  rights  reserved  to  the  states.  With  the  one  exception  of 
the  School  of  Law,  the  head  of  a  school  was  the  sole  and  final  arbiter  as  to 


190         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

courses  offered,  textbooks  and  methods  used.  Absolute  Lehrfreiheit  was 
the  guiding  principle. 

In  the  list  of  subjects  to  be  taught  in  the  individual  schools,  one  is 
immediately  struck  both  by  the  advanced  and  speciaHzed  nature  of  the 
courses  to  be  offered  and  by  the  broad  conception  of  the  field  of  learning 
allotted  to  each  school.  In  the  schools  of  Ancient  and  Modern  Languages 
were  to  be  taught  not  only  the  language  and  literature,  but  also  the  history 
and  geography,  the  political  and  social  institutions,  the  economic  conditions, 
ancient  and  modern,  of  the  nations  whose  languages  were  studied, — as  a 
matter  of  fact,  philology  in  its  widest  sense.  The  school  of  Natural  Philo- 
sophy was  to  give  instruction  in  the  whole  realm  of  modern  physics,  and  in 
mechanics,  geology,  mineralogy,  botany,  and  astronomy,  that  of  Mathe- 
matics in  all  branches  of  Pure  and  Applied  Mathematics,  including  survey- 
ing, engineering,  and  navigation.  The  school  of  Moral  Philosophy  com- 
prised not  only  Logic,  Ethics,  Psychology  and  Metaphysics,  but  also 
courses  in  Criticism,  Belles  Lettres,  and  Political  Economy.  The  School  of 
Chemistry  was  most  restricted  in  its  field,  being  limited  to  Chemistry  and 
Materia  Medica,  the  latter,  however,  being  especially  for  students  of  medicine. 

As  is  well  known,  Jefferson's  original  complete  plan  included  a  system 
of  state-supported  commonschools,  a  group  of  ten  state  colleges,  and  the 
University  as  the  apex  of  his  pyramid.  When  it  became  evident  that  cir- 
cumstances, political,  social,  and  economic,  made  impracticable  the  carry- 
ing-out of  the  whole  scheme,  the  University  alone  was  retained.  The 
pyramid  was  to  begin  with  the  apex,  the  educational  arch  with  the  key- 
stone. Whether  such  topsy-tiu-vy  architecture  possessed  a  validity  in  the 
world  of  ideas,  failing  it  in  the  realm  of  space,  time  alone  could  show.  In  fact, 
for  over  two  generations  the  history  of  academic  schools  is  that  of  a  constant 
effort  to  build  downward,  to  adapt  themselves  to  a  very  slowly  growing  foun- 
dation and  thus  save  the  structure  from  the  usual  fate  of  castles  in  the  air. 

For  Jefferson,  uninfluenced  by  his  failure  to  establish  state  colleges  as 
feeders,  adhered  to  the  university  conception  of  the  institution,  as  dis- 
tinguished from  the  collegiate;  rather  a  university  of  instruction,  however, 
than  of  research. 

And  here  I  feel  I  must  attempt  to  clear  up  what  seems  to  me  an  almost 
universal  misunderstanding.  The  freedom  in  choice  of  courses  given  the 
individual  student  was  not  the  so-called  elective  curriculum,  later  appearing 
as  a  revolutionary  innovation  in  undergraduate  colleges.  It  was  a  necessary 
concomitant  of  the  University  as  distinguished  from  the  colleges, — the 
Lehrfreiheit  of  the  student  as  a  complement  to  the  Lehrfreiheit  of  the 
professor.  Jefferson  cannot  be  called  the  inventor,  or,  as  some  would  put  it, 
the  instigator,  of  unrestricted  election  in  undergraduate  education. 

Nor  was  his  university,  as  has  sometimes  been  asserted,  a  university 


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Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  191 

without  a  degree.  The  Enactments  of  1825  provide  for  two  diplomas:  that 
of  Doctor  and  of  Graduate.  Though  not  so  Hmited  in  the  Enactments, 
the  Doctor's  diploma  was  from  the  beginning  restricted  to  graduates  in  all 
the  courses  applying  to  the  practice  of  medicine,  and  so  does  not  concern  us 
here.  The  degree  of  Graduate  in  its  original  application  has  been  frequently- 
misunderstood.  It  was  not  given  to  any  student  who  merely  attained 
the  first  division  (the  term  "passed"  is  of  much  later  origin)  in  a  senior 
course  in  any  school,  or  in  all  the  courses  in  the  school.  This  merely  quali- 
fied the  student  as  an  applicant  for  candidacy  for  the  degree.  The  degree 
was  conferred  on  the  basis  of  a  special  examination  for  graduation.  The 
scope  of  these  examinations  is  described  in  the  faculty  minutes,  and  in 
addition  the  actual  examination  given  is  outlined  in  presenting  the  report 
on  each  individual  candidate  to  the  faculty.  The  examination  oral  and 
written  covered  every  phase  of  the  subject  and  is  essentially  the  rigor osa  of 
the  German  Ph.D.,  rigorously  interpreted.  Moreover  the  original  Enact- 
ments provided :  ' '  But  no  diploma  shall  be  given  to  anyone,  who  has  not 
passed  such  an  examination  in  the  Latin  Language  as  shall  have  proved  him 
able  to  read  the  highest  classics  in  that  language  with  ease,  thorough  under- 
standing, and  just  quantity.  And  if  he  be  also  prepared  in  Greek,  let  that 
also  be  stated  in  the  Diploma."  The  reasons  given  for  this  are  interesting 
as  indicating  Jefferson's  conception  of  "a  well-educated  man,"  and  also 
what  his  opinion  of  any  elective  system  which  omitted  Latin  and  Greek 
would  have  been.  The  regulation  continues:  "The  intention  being  that 
the  reputation  of  the  University  shall  not  be  committed  but  to  those  who, 
to  an  eminence  in  some  one  or  more  of  the  sciences  taught  in  it,  add  a  pro- 
ficiency in  those  languages  which  constitute  the  basis  of  a  good  education 
and  are 'indispensable  to  fill  up  the  character  of  a  'well-educated  man.'  " 
This  practically  amounted  to  requiring  of  a  graduate  in  any  school  or  the 
recipient  of  any  diploma  the  completion  of  Senior  Latin  and,  by  implication, 
also  of  Senior  Greek.  We  shall  see  that  it  was  so  interpreted  in  the  case 
of  each  graduate  with  diploma  (including  M.D.'s)  until  the  establishment  of 
the  M.A.  degree.  We  shall  also  see  that  the  graduates  of  this  first  period 
did  not  apply  for  candidacy  for  the  degree  until  they  had  attained  the  first 
division  in  the  senior  course  of  the  school  for  two  sessions,  and  that  each  of 
them  had  regularly  won  previous  to  the  conferring  of  the  degree  similar 
distinction  at  intermediate  and  final  examinations  in  course  in  four  other 
schools,  including  Latin  and,  in  all  cases  but  one  (Grad.  in  Chem.),  also 
Greek.  By  subsequent  enactment  (April,  1828),  the  faculty  added  an 
English  Examination,  to  be  required  of  all  candidates.  This  consisted  of  a 
composition  of  not  less  than  twenty-five  lines,  on  some  subject  from  the 
course  in  which  the  candidate  applied  for  graduation,  and  of  an  examination 
in  syntax  and  orthography.     It  was  held  before  the  entire  faculty.     The 


192         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

degree  of  Graduate  in  a  School  could  not  be  obtained  in  less  than  three 
years,  and  actually  was  not.  Such  a  degree  was  what  we  think  of  as  a 
Ph.D.,  minus  a  dissertation  or  thesis.  The  latter  was  required  only  of  the 
doctors  of  medicine,  and  included  also  the  public  defense  of  the  thesis,  if 
the  candidate  was  called  on. 

Let  us  see  now  the  working  out  of  these  three  characteristics  of  a 
university  in  application  to  contemporary  conditions.  Mr.  Gilmer  had 
been  eminently  successful  in  his  hunt  for  "characters  of  the  first  order." 
No  new  institution  of  the  time  could  have  shown  a  more  competent  faculty. 
And  this  faculty  proceeded  rigorously  to  put  into  effect  the  constitution 
drawn  up  for  its  guidance  and  control.  The  autonomy  of  the  individual 
school  and  the  academic  freedom  of  instruction  caused  no  trouble.  Quite 
otherwise  the  academic  freedom  of  the  student.  It  became  almost  im- 
mediately evident  that  only  a  few  students  of  exceptional  ability  and 
unusual  advantages  in  preparatory  education  were  willing  or  able  to  profit 
by  university  instruction  and  academic  freedom,  if  success  in  examination  is 
a  criterion  of  such  profit.  The  number  of  students  attaining  distinction  in 
examinations  in  course  was  very  small  year  by  year,  and  after  three  sessions 
only  six  made  application  for  the  degree  of  Graduate  in  a  School. 

An  examination  of  the  record  of  these  first  graduates  of  the  University 
will  show  how  strictly  the  stated  requirements  for  graduation  were  observed 
and  also  the  advanced  nature  of  the  examinations  for  graduation.  May  31 , 
1828  was  set  as  the  last  day  on  which  application  for  degrees  might  be  made. 
The  nine  applicants  (three  for  M.D.)  were  examined  in  English  the  same 
day.  All  were  accepted,  though  one  was  recalled  and  reexamined,  as  there 
seemed  some  doubt  as  to  his  qualification.  The  examinations  for  gradu- 
ation began  on  the  fourth  Monday  in  June  and  the  results  were  reported 
to  the  faculty  and  the  degrees  conferred  on  the  14th  and  17th  of  July.  Four 
examinations  of  two  hours  each  were  held  in  Greek:  two  in  writing,  on 
Euripides,  Herodotus,  Thucydides,  and  Xenophon,  and  on  Greek  prosody, 
especially  the  trochaic,  iambic,  and  anapaestic  of  tragedy;  two  on  Greek 
history,  geography,  and  philology;  and  an  oral  on  Xenophon.  The  two 
examinations  on  Mathematics  were  held  on  separate  days  and  consisted 
of  questions  selected  from  one  hundred  examples  from  Peacock's  Collection 
of  Examples  in  Differential  and  Integral  Calculus,  and  of  questions  chosen  by 
the  faculty  from  La  Place's  Traite  de  Mecanique  Celeste  and  from  Codding- 
ton's  Optics.  The  two  examinations  in  Chemistry  of  two  hours  each 
covered  the  following  topics :  the  Rationale  of  all  Chemical  Operations ;  the 
Elements  of  Practical  Chemistry,  more  particularly  with  respect  to  the  use 
of  Tests  and  Apparatus ;  Nomenclature ;  Laws  of  Composition ;  Applications 
of  Chemistry;  History  of  the  Science.  In  addition  the  candidates  in 
Chemistry  were  required  to  furnish  a  week  before  examination  a  written 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  193 

statement  of  all  speculative  subjects  in  Chemistry,  and  to  explain,  if  called 
upon,  the  existing  theories  respecting  them,  and  to  write  by  dictation  upon 
subjects  connected  with  Chemical  Technology.  Each  candidate  had  at- 
tained eminence  for  two  sessions  in  the  senior  course  of  the  school  in  which  he 
graduated.  In  addition  each  had  passed  on  four  other  senior  courses.  These 
in  every  case  included  Senior  Latin,  and  in  every  case  but  one  Senior  Greek. 

This  then  was  the  academic  degree  system  in  theory  and  practice  until 
the  M.A.  was  instituted.  I  have  gone  into  it  in  some  detail,  because  the 
three  principles  involved :  the  autonomy  and  independence  of  the  individual 
school ;  the  high  standard  for  graduation  with  almost  exclusive  emphasis  on 
the  senior  courses;  and  the  freedom  in  choice  of  studies  allowed  to  the 
student,  dominated  the  development  of  the  academic  courses  for  nearly 
three  quarters  of  a  century  and  influences  it  strongly  even  to-day. 

It  had  become  evident  that  the  degree  of  Graduate  in  a  School  either 
could  or  would  be  sought  by  only  about  one  student  in  twenty.  In  1828, 
the  year  in  which  these  first  diplomas  were  conferred,  began  in  the  faculty 
the  discussion  of  a  more  general  and  coordinated  degree.  Three  years  later 
the  Master  of  Arts  of  the  University  of  Virginia  was  superimposed  on  the 
degree  of  Graduate.  From  the  scanty  records  available  of  the  discussion 
preceding  the  recommendation  of  the  degree,  the  faculty  seems  to  have 
intended  by  it  to  obviate  the  disadvantages  of  study  without  fixed  plan — in 
other  words,  to  supply  a  curriculum.  The  degree  of  Graduate  in  a  School,  as 
originally  conferred,  was  beyond  the  powers  of  nine  out  of  ten  of  the  students. 
This  new  degree  required  graduation  in  all  six  schools,  a  total  of  eight  senior 
courses,  as  Latin  and  Greek  were  both  required  in  Ancient  Languages,  and 
one  Romanic  and  one  Germanic  tongue  in  Modern  Languages.  As  three 
schools  a  year  had  already  become  the  standard  maximum  of  work  under- 
taken by  each  student,  the  degree  could  not  be  taken  in  less  than  three 
sessions,  and  then  only  if  the  student  entered  prepared  to  take  senior  courses 
in  all  subjects  but  one. 

At  first  there  was  no  abatement  in  the  difficult  standard  of  graduation 
in  the  individual  school,  except  that  Latin  was  no  longer  required  as  a 
qualification  for  the  diploma.  The  distinction  between  examinations  for 
graduation  and  examinations  for  distinction  was  still  made.  In  addition, 
the  candidate  had  also  to  stand  before  graduation  a  general  examination  in 
all  courses  required  for  the  degree,  and  show  by  examination  a  satisfactory 
knowledge  of  English,  and  also  to  prepare  a  graduation  essay  or  thesis. 
These  last  three  requirements,  however,  were  gradually  relaxed  in  severity 
and  finally  abolished. 

There  still  remained,  however,  the  most  striking  characteristic  of  the 
degree, — the  almost  exclusive  emphasis  placed  on  the  senior  courses.  This 
seems  to  have  had  two  effects, — disregard  of  the  educational  importance  of 

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194         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

lower  courses,  and  a  gradual  common-sense  reduction  in  the  amount  of  work 
required  in  the  higher  ones  as  the  number  of  academic  schools  increased. 

Prior  to  the  period  of  the  development  of  the  sciences  as  educational 
subjects,  only  two  additions  were  made  to  Jefferson's  original  six  academic 
schools.  From  the  beginning  the  University  had  been  subject  to  criticism 
because  it  offered  no  specific  instruction  in  English  and  General  History. 
Jefferson  probably  considered  that  History  would  be  sufficiently  provided 
for  in  the  schools  of  Ancient  and  Modern  Languages,  and  that  the  courses 
in  Latin  and  Greek  would  afford  adequate  training  in  English  composition 
while  the  course  in  Anglo-Saxon  would  teach  the  history  and  development 
of  the  language.  From  the  beginning,  however,  the  faculty  imposed  an 
additional  English  requirement.  Finally  in  1856-57,  the  establishment  of 
the  School  of  History  and  Literature  was  announced,  with  that  most  ver- 
satile of  scholars,  George  Frederick  Holmes,  as  Professor.  At  first,  the 
instruction  was  for  the  most  part  in  English  Composition,  with  lectures  on 
Literature,  but  gradually,  the  interest  of  the  head  of  the  school  shifted  to 
General  History  and  Sociology,  with  consequent  change  in  thecourses  offered. 
Its  courses  were  not  listed  among  those  required  for  the  M.A.  until  after 
1856,  so  that  the  requirements  of  the  degree  remained  unchanged  until  then. 

The  second  new  school  made  no  increase  in  the  courses  given.  By 
1857  the  number  of  students  in  Latin  and  Greek  was  so  great  as  to  be  be- 
yond the  strength  of  a  single  professor,  even  with  two  or  three  assistant- 
instructors.  In  1858,  therefore,  Basil  L.  Gildersleeve  was  elected  Professor 
of  Greek,  and  the  School  of  Greek  created  as  an  independent  school.  The 
precedent  thus  established,  that  the  creation  of  a  new  professorship  meant 
the  establishment  of  a  new  independent  school,  was  closely  adhered  to  until 
1905.  The  logical  development  of  Jefferson's  broadly  conceived  academic 
schools  would  have  been  the  creation  of  professors  of  individual  subjects  in  a 
school,  without  further  subdivision.  This  departure  seems  to  the  writer 
to  have  been  unfortunate.  It  weakened  the  individual  school.  It  led  to 
lack  of  coordination  in  the  programmes,  both  undergraduate  and  graduate, 
subsequently  established.  And  the  principle  of  the  independence  and  equal 
importance  of  the  academic  schools,  now  applied  to  what  should  have  been 
minor  subdivisions,  produced  an  impossible  multiplication  of  subjects 
required  for  the  "old  M.A,"  and  even  for  the  first  real  undergraduate  degree 
established,  so  that  freedom  of  election  amounted  to  little  more  than  a 
choice  (frequently  unwise)  of  the  chronological  order  in  which  the  required 
courses  could  be  taken. 

In  connection  with  the  School  of  Greek  comes  the  first  indication  that 
the  degree  of  Graduate  in  a  School  was  no  longer  the  highest  conception  of 
specialized  academic  study.  In  1859-60,  the  School  of  Greek  announces 
the  formation  of  "a  post-graduate  department,  in  which  graduates  and 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  i95 

more  advanced  students  have  opportunity  to  extend  their  acquaintance 
with  Greek  literature  under  the  personal  direction  of  the  Professor.  The 
course  embraces  such  of  the  higher  Greek  classics,  as  are  unsuited,  either  by 
form  or  by  subject,  for  the  general  instruction:  e.g.:  ^schylus  (sic), 
Aristophanes,  Aristotle,  Hesiod,  Pindar,  Theocritus."  Seven  graduates  in 
Greek  of  the  previous  session  entered  it,  among  these  Launcelot  M.  Black- 
ford, later  the  most  distinguished  preparatory-school  principal  of  the  South, 
and  H.  H.  Harris,  afterward  Professor  of  Greek  in  Pvichmond  College. 
When  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  allowed  the  wounded  veteran  to  return  to 
the  University,  Professor  Gildersleeve  resumed  the  post-graduate  course. 
It  continued  to  enroll  from  half  a  dozen  to  a  dozen  graduates  annually,  and 
was,  so  far  as  I  have  been  able  to  discover,  the  first  graduate  course,  in  the 
modern  sense,  offered  in  an  American  university.  In  1867  a  similar  "post- 
graduate department"  in  the  School  of  Latin  was  announced  by  Professor 
William  E.  Peters. 

In  spite  of  its  long  history  and  the  fanatic  reverence  shown  it,  even 
by  those  students  who  could  never  hope  to  obtain  it,  "the  old  M.A."  did 
not  fulfill  the  purpose  with  which  the  faculty  established  it,  nor  was  it  suited 
to  educational  needs.  It  was  too  general  for  graduate  work  and  yet  the 
courses  required  were  too  advanced  for  the  great  mass  of  academic  students. 
By  depreciating  the  esteem  in  which  the  degree  of  Graduate  in  a  School  was 
originally  held,  it  lowered  the  high  standard  of  graduation  in  the  individual 
school,  without  producing,  in  compensation,  courses  suited  to  the  great 
majority  of  the  students.  Finally,  it  was  so  difficult  that  scarcely  one 
student  out  of  twenty  could  ever  hope  to  obtain  it  or  actually  did.  In 
consequence  the  other  nineteen  lacked,  while  students,  the  sense  of  organic 
connection  with  the  University  which  a  candidate  for  a  degree  has;  were 
without  the  added  incentive  to  successful  work  which  this  gives;  saw  no 
especial  academic  inducement  for  more  than  a  session  or  two  of  study; 
and,  leaving  without  a  degree,  had  not,  as  alumni,  that  feeling  of  continuing 
membership  in  the  living  organism  of  the  University  which  a  degree  gives. 

The  faculty  was  not  unaware  of  these  defects.  In  1848  it  established 
a  B.A.  degree,  but  one  that  shows  how  difficult  it  was  to  break  with  the 
tradition  of  the  overweening  importance  of  the  senior  courses,  especially  in 
Latin  and  Greek,  and  the  independence  and  equal  sovereignty  of  the  aca- 
demic schools .  It  required  graduation  in  all  but  two  schools  and  a  proficiency 
in  the  junior  courses  of  the  remaining  two,  and  was  therefore  almost  as  difficult 
as  the  M.A.  Despite  this  it  seems  to  have  been  regarded  as  a  contemptible 
consolation  prize.     At  any  rate,  few  students  ever  applied  for  it. 

After  the  Civil  War,  during  the  period  in  which  schools  of  Biology  and 
Agriculture,  Analytical  and  Industrial  Chemistry,  and  Geology  were 
established,  repeated  efforts  were  made  to  break  from  the  "old  M.A.'s" 


19^         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

dominating  influence  without  abolishing  it.  New  baccalaureate  degrees, — 
at  one  time  three  in  addition  to  the  B.A., — were  instituted.  None  "took," 
so  to  speak.  All  suffered  the  fate  of  the  first  B.A.  The  addition  of  new 
schools,  with  new  M.A.  courses,  as  they  had  now  come  to  be  called,  only- 
increased  the  impracticability  of  the  Master  of  Arts  degree. 

Despite  this,  the  development  of  the  University  continued,  a  develop- 
ment that  must  be  attributed  to  the  ability,  scholarship,  and  personality  of 
the  individual  professors  rather  than  to  any  coordinated  educational  plan. 
Nor  were  these  qualities  confined  to  the  lecture-room.  Two  of  the  faculty 
became,  through  their  books,  great  popular  educators.  The  names  of 
McGuffey  and  Holmes  carried  the  reputation  of  the  University  into  almost 
every  primary  school  in  the  country.  In  addition  to  this,  Professor  Holmes 
quickly  became  one  of  the  most  prolific  and  versatile  of  publicists,  his  ver- 
satility being  only  equaled  by  the  soundness  and  depth  of  his  scholarship. 
Dr.  Mallet  began  the  publication  of  those  articles  which  were  to  make  his 
name  familiar  to  every  chemist,  while  Professor  Scheie  de  Vere's  publications 
in  linguistics  and  etymology  gave  the  University  international  standing  in 
these  rapidly  developing  sciences,  and  Courtenay's  Calculus  was  long  a  stand- 
ard work  in  this  branch  of  mathematics.  To  the  weight  of  scholarship  and 
learning  in  these  and  other  members  of  the  faculty  was  added  the  energiz- 
ing force  of  the  strong  and  distinctive  personality  of  each  individual. 

Nor  would  I  imply  that  the  great  mass  of  academic  students,  who  went 
away  without  degree,  were  on  this  account  uneducated.  Their  training 
had  resembled  that  which  one  acquires  in  the  contacts  of  real  life  in  the 
world  rather  than  the  co5rdinated  discipline  of  a  curriculum.  They  had 
been  educated  by  personalities  rather  than  subjects.  And  the  man  who  had 
' '  had  "  "  old  Pete ' '  or  Colonel  Venable  or  Basil  Gildersleeve,  or  Dr.  Mallet  or 
Professor  Smith  may  have  failed  on  Latin,  Mathematics,  Greek  or  Physics, 
but  he  had  learned  something  that  none  of  these  subjects  alone  could  have 
taught  him.  Moreover,  the  students  of  this  middle  period,  particularly  in 
the  ante  bellum  decade,  had  an  intellectual  stimulus,  which  their  present 
successors  seem  to  me  to  have  lost  They  belonged  to  a  governing  class, — 
an  aristocracy,  if  you  will.  Almost  without  exception,  each  one  could  look 
forward,  in  one  way  or  another,  to  direct  power  in  political  life.  Their  read- 
ing, as  shown  in  the  library  records,  their  work  in  the  literary  societies,  even 
their  daily  conversation,  so  far  as  we  have  record  of  it,  reflects  this.  In 
this  respect  they  resembled  rather  the  students  of  Oxford  and  Cambridge, 
those  universities  of  English  diplomacy  and  statesmanship,  than  the  student- 
body  of  the  modern  American  college.  Their  history  in  after  life  shows  that 
education  and  leadership  are  not  matters  of  a  degree. 

The  twenty  years,  approximately  1870-90,  closing  the  life  of  the  old 
M.A.,  are  characterized  by  certain  salient  features.     First,  the  growth 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  197 

in  natural  science  and  the  development  of  laboratory  work;  second,  the 
shifting  of  emphasis  from  Latin  and  Greek  to  Modern  Languages,  EngHsh, 
and  History.  With  each  professorship  a  new  school  was  established, — 
independent  and  of  equal  importance  with  its  sister  sovereignties.  The 
M.A.  was  thus  threatening  to  topple  over  from  its  own  weight.  Finally, 
after  a  long  and  acrimonious  conflict  with  alumni,  the  faculty  recommended 
in  1890  its  abolition.  In  its  place  were  instituted  a  new  B.A.,  requiring 
passing  on  nine  intermediate  courses,  classified  into  groups  of  related  sub- 
jects, and  a  new  M.A.,  conferred  on  B.A.'s  who  passed  on  four  additional 
senior  courses.  For  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  University  the  dis- 
tinction was  made  between  undergraduate  and  graduate  courses,  and  the 
foundation  laid  for  a  college. 

At  first,  as  was  to  be  expected,  the  new  baccalaureate  degree  was 
strongly  influenced  by  the  conception  of  the  importance  and  comprehensive 
character  of  the  work  of  the  individual  school.  The  small  number  of 
courses  required  for  it,  as  compared  with  baccalaureate  degrees  in  other 
colleges,  was  based  on  the  assumption  that  concentration  on  three  subjects 
in  a  single  session  was  better  educationally  than  to  cover  the  same  ground  in 
each  subject  in  two  sessions,  at  the  rate  of  from  five  to  six  courses  a  year. 
Experience  proved,  however,  that  this  was  a  mistake,  and  in  191 1  all  the  old 
intermediate  courses  (now  designated  B  courses)  except  those  in  laboratory 
sciences,  were  divided  into  Bi  and  B2  courses  of  a  year  each.  The  bac- 
calaureate degree  thus  became  the  normal  60  session-hour  degree  of  the 
standard  American  college,  and  the  differentiation  between  the  College  and 
the  Graduate  school  was  fully  established. 

During  this  period  of  transition, — indeed  at  its  very  beginning, — an 
addition  of  transcendent  importance  was  made  to  the  number  of  academic 
schools:  the  foundation  in  1892  of  the  Linden  Kent  Memorial  School  of 
English  Literature,  with  Professor  Charles  W.  Kent  as  its  first  professor. 
The  school  of  English,  established  in  1882,  had  not  been  a  success,  and  the 
undergraduate  students  were  without  systematic  training  in  English  com- 
position and  Rhetoric  and  Modern  English  Literature.  To  a  group  of 
alumni,  who  knew  Dr.  Kent  and  most  of  whom  were  students  under  him,  it 
is  not  necessary  to  emphasize  the  astounding  development  in  these  all- 
important  subjects,  that  is  due  to  his  scholarship,  educational  statesman- 
ship, unremitting  industry,  high  standard  of  work,  and  enthusiastic  and 
inspiring  personality. 

With  the  differentiation  of  undergraduate  from  graduate  courses 
begins  also  the  period  of  close  connection  between  the  University  and  the 
public-school  system  of  the  state,  dreamed  by  Jefferson  but  so  long  denied 
fruition.  Its  first  sympton  was  the  institution  and  growth  of  so-called  Ai 
courses  in  foreign  languages,  English,  and  Mathematics,  to  fill  in  the  gap 


198         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

which  was  found  to  exist  between  the  end  of  the  high-school  course  and  the 
B.A.  courses  in  the  University.  From  this  time  on  the  coordination  between 
the  state's  secondary  and  higher  education  gradually  becomes  perfected. 

In  one  particular,  however,  the  60-hour  baccalaureate  degree  from  191 1 
still  showed  the  influence  of  the  independence  and  equal  importance  of  the 
individual  academic  school  of  the  old  M.A.  Each  school,  new  or  old,  desired 
and  frequently  claimed,  directly  or  indirectly,  equal  representation  in  the 
degree  programme.  This  led  to  such  multiplication  of  small  groups  of 
required  subjects  that  the  student's  election  of  studies  amounted  to  not  much 
more  than  a  choice  of  the  chronological  order  in  which  the  required  subjects 
might  be  taken.  This  defect  has  been  removed  by  the  new  baccalaureate 
programme,  effective  next  session,  which  provides  for  fundamental  subjects 
in  the  first  two  sessions,  free  election  during  the  last  two,  and  for  con- 
centration by  requiring  that  the  candidate  shall  have  completed  in  one 
school  a  C  course  to  which  six  hours,  or  two  B  courses,  are  prerequisite. 

In  conclusion  I  would  sum  up  by  saying  that  we  have  freed  ourselves 
from  the  mere  letter  of  the  original  Enactments,  but  have  remained  true  to 
their  spirit.  After  a  century  the  apex  of  the  pyramid  has  not  been  lowered 
but  has  built  downward  to  a  firm  foundation,  the  keystone  has  developed  the 
arch.  And  the  result  is  not  a  dead  structure,  but  a  living  organism,  capable 
of  almost  infinite  growth. 

A  prophet  is  notoriously  without  honor  in  his  own  country.  From 
prophecy  I  would  therefore  refrain.  I  would  state  only  what  seem  to  me  the 
two  general  problems  which  the  academic  schools  must  now  face  and  solve : 
first,  the  evolution  of  some  plan,  which  will  give  both  stimulus  and  recogni- 
tion to  the  undergraduate  student  of  unusual  ability  and  special  intellectual 
interests :  something  in  the  nature  of  the  Honors  Schools  at  Oxford ;  and 
second,  the  development  of  the  graduate  department,  with  its  masters'  and 
doctors'  degrees,  into  a  great  fountain-head  of  scholarship  and  productive 
research,  in  keeping  with  the  ideal  of  our  great  founder. 

In  the  papers  to  be  read  before  the  separate  sections,  I  feel  sure  we  may 
hope  to  find  the  method  of  approach  and  solution  of  these  two  problems. 

I.    The  Language  and  Literature  Group 

THE  PRESENT  CRISIS  IN  MODERN  LANGUAGE  INSTRUCTION 
By  Robert  Herndon  Fife,  Ph.D.,  Columbia  University 

The  bromidic  remark,  heard  very  often  three  years  ago,  that  "things 
will  never  be  the  same  after  the  war"  has  proved  as  true  a  prediction  in  the 
field  of  modern  language  instruction  as  in  other  fields.  The  war  seemed  at 
first  to  bring  an  immense  increase  of  interest  in  our  subject.     For  the  first 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         199 

time  in  history  America  sent  its  soldiers  to  fight  on  the  soil  of  Europe,  with 
its  sharp  linguistic  divisions  and  rivalries.  To  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
young  Americans,  French  ceased  to  be  a  memory  of  the  school  bench  or  an 
unreal  tradition  of  something  far  off  and  unknown  and  became  the  daily 
speech  of  comrades  in  trench  and  field  and  of  a  citizenry  bound  to  ourselves 
in  the  daily  routine  of  a  common  cause.  German,  somewhat  more  often 
heard  here  as  a  living  language,  and  consequently  more  vital  to  us,  was  no 
longer  merely  the  vernacular  of  handworker  or  cheese-and-butter  merchant, 
but  became  the  expression  of  the  spirit,  living  in  the  mouth  of  prisoner  or 
captor,  of  a  nation  in  arms,  seeking  to  destroy  our  ideals.  Italian  and  Polish, 
Russian  and  Bohemian,  Servian  and  Roumanian  and  Greek,  all  shot  into 
reality  and  half  a  dozen  more  tongues  forced  themselves  as  living  organisms 
into  the  consciousness  of  the  youth  of  America,  which  up  to  that  time  had 
scarcely  dreamed  of  their  existence. 

The  first  result  of  all  this  was  to  demonstrate  how  insufficient  and  un- 
practical our  instruction  in  the  modem  languages  had  been.  Young  men 
and  women,  who  had  spent  precious  years  in  the  acquisition  of  what  they 
fondly  imagined  was  a  practical  knowledge  of  the  French  language,  found 
themselves  face  to  face  with  Frenchmen  and  unable  to  understand  the  first 
word  or  express  the  most  urgent  want,  and  even  months  of  intercourse 
with  the  people  of  the  country  was  insufficient  to  do  more  than  supply  the 
means  of  conveying  the  simplest  daily  needs,  because  of  the  lack  of  a  proper 
basis  of  training  in  idiom  and  vocabulary. 

One  immediate  consequence  of  the  declaration  of  war  was  a  tremendous 
growth  of  interest  in  the  language  of  the  associated  nation  on  whose  soil 
the  western  front  was  drawn,  In  camp  and  cantonment,  in  school  and  club 
the  size  of  the  classes  in  French  depended  only  on  the  number  of  available 
teachers.  These  teachers  were  often  blind  leaders  of  the  blind ;  but  if  they 
had  been  the  most  expert  of  their  profession,  the  conditions  under  which 
they  had  to  work  could  have  made  anything  like  real  success  out  of  the 
question.  For  it  now  became  generally  clear,  something  which  of  course 
was  known  already  to  the  trained  teacher,  that  the  use  of  a  modern  lan- 
guage for  any  practical  purpose  is  an  art  which,  to  be  acquired  successfully, 
needs  the  plasticity  of  youth  and  a  perseverance  and  method  which  the 
crowded  months  of  the  war  could  not  admit.  The  urgent  days  of  the 
struggle  and  of  repatriation  of  the  forces  did  little  more  for  the  study  of  the 
foreign  modern  languages  than  to  show  the  defects  in  our  system. 

This  revelation  of  defect  was,  however,  of  sanitary  value,  for  it  came  at 
a  time  when  America's  changed  position  as  a  result  of  the  Great  War  put  a 
practical  knowledge  of  the  modern  languages  among  the  absolute  impera- 
tives of  national  security.  Whatever  currents  may  flow  on  the  surface  of 
the  political  waters,  however  politicians  who  have  been  washed  to  the  top 


200         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

by  the  muddy  ebb-tide  of  war  may  prate  of  American  isolation  or  appeal  to 
short-sighted  selfishness  with  smug  platitudes  about  America's  national 
interests,  the  intertwining  of  our  affairs  with  those  of  Europe  cannot  be 
undone.  Economic  forces  as  irresistible  as  those  geological  changes  that 
come  with  the  cooling  of  the  planetary  crust  have  set  us  down  among 
Frenchmen  and  Italians  and  Germans  and  Poles  and  Czechs  and  Russians 
and  have  made  us  industrially  dependent  on  these  peoples.  Heretofore  it 
has  been  simply  the  bonds  of  a  common  civilization  that  have  held  us  to  the 
Continent,  and  these  have  been  drawn  mainly  through  England.  From 
now  on  it  is  the  life  cords  of  economic  preservation  and  national  develop- 
ment which  unite  our  banks  and  farms  and  factories  to  the  capitals  and 
commercial  centers  of  every  European  country.  We  have  recently  wit- 
nessed the  effort,  more  or  less  disguised,  of  both  former  associates  and  foes 
to  make  America  out  of  its  wealth  pay  the  cost  of  the  outbreak  of  European 
jealousy  and  ambition.  We  may  rest  assured  that  unless  we  are  fully 
equipped  for  defense  in  the  field  of  international  finance  and  commerce,  we 
shall  not  only  find  ourselves  paying  the  German  indemnity  and  rebuilding 
France  but  left  behind  in  the  planetary  race  for  commerce  which  is  even  now 
being  staged. 

Unfortunately  also,  the  war  has  brought  about  changes  in  modern 
language  instruction  which  have  left  us  poorly  prepared  to  face  the  present 
crisis.  German  has  been  very  largely  driven  from  the  schools.  This  came 
as  a  result  of  conditions  which  brought  us  into  the  conflict  and  through  the 
impulsive  character  of  our  national  temperament;  but  the  consequences 
have  been  none  the  less  destructive  and  from  the  standpoint  of  national 
strength  deplorable,  for  in  191 7  German  was,  as  a  rule,  the  best  taught  of  the 
foreign  languages  and  as  a  branch  of  secondary  school  and  collegiate  in- 
struction was  in  many  parts  of  the  country  on  the  way  to  develop  a  method- 
ology of  teaching  at  least  on  a  par  with  that  of  the  better  EngHsh  schools 
and  not  far  below  that  of  the  Continental  schools  themselves.  French 
was  immediately  lifted  into  a  position  of  tremendous  importance,  with  the 
resulting  overcrowding  of  classes.  Teachers,  whose  sole  equipment  con- 
sisted of  some  knowledge  of  the  French  verbs  and  the  buoyant  disposition 
that  came  with  the  outburst  of  national  enthusiasm,  were  put  in  charge  of 
classes  where  overcrowding  would  have  made  success  impossible  under  the 
most  experienced  instructor.  Spanish,  which  five  years  ago  was  scarcely 
known  as  a  high  school  subject  in  the  New  England,  North  Atlantic,  and 
Middle  Western  states  has,  through  the  indifference  of  school  directors  and 
as  a  result  of  an  unheard-of  propaganda,  been  given  an  importance  among 
school  subjects  which  is  far  out  of  proportion  to  its  cultural  and  scientific 
value,  and  in  most  sections  of  our  country  in  no  relation  whatever 
to  its  commercial  significance.     As  a  matter  of  course,  no  consideration 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         201 

whatever  has  been  given  to  the  desperate  lack  of  trained  teachers  of  Spanish. 
Many  men  and  women,  formerly  efficient  teachers  of  German,  have  become 
inefficient  and  discouraged  teachers  of  Spanish.  While  it  must  be  said  of 
these  that  they  have  at  least  had  some  general  pedagogical  experience  in 
modern  language  instruction,  which  may  in  part  compensate  for  an  ignorance 
of  Spanish,  a  great  number  of  the  newly  recruited  teachers  of  Spanish 
lacks  even  this  asset. 

It  would  be  bad  enough  if  we  had  simply  destroyed  our  former  values. 
We  have  done  more.  We  have  shaken  the  confidence  of  school  superin- 
tendents and  the  public  generally  in  the  teaching  of  the  modern  languages. 
From  every  side  comes  the  statement  that  pupils  are  discouraged  and 
unwilling  to  continue  the  subject,  that  school  principals  have  either  reduced 
the  already  insufficient  time  assigned  to  the  modern  languages  or  threaten 
to  eliminate  them  altogether,  that  school  committees  are  not  sympathetic, 
that  parents  are  restive  and  want  to  see  their  children  taught  something 
where  demonstrably  useful  results  may  be  obtained. 

It  must  be  said  that  the  attitude  of  certain  modern  language  teachers  is 
not  of  a  character  to  recommend  the  subjects  which  they  represent,  At  a 
time  when  the  value  of  violent  and  persistent  propaganda  has  been  demon- 
strated to  a  sufficiency  in  every  country  in  the  world,  the  modern  language 
teacher  has  not  failed  to  note  the  lesson  and  has  cried  his  wares  with  an 
insistency  that  does  credit  to  a  commercial  age.  The  German  teacher,  to 
be  sure,  has  been  under  the  shadow;  but  with  the  coming  of  technical  peace 
he  may  be  trusted  to  rush  to  the  fore  with  the  others.  In  the  meantime  the 
representatives  of  French  have  found  conditions  most  favorable.  The 
Spanish  and  Latin  propagandists  have  fought  merrily  over  the  bones  of 
German  instruction  and  proclaimed  the  value  of  their  substitute  with 
unhalting  voice.  The  advocates  of  Russia  were  warming  up  for  an  advance 
on  the  schools  in  191 7,  when  certain  events  in  St.  Petersburg  brought  their 
advance  to  a  sudden  halt.  Italian  has  a  small  but  vociferous  band  of  devo- 
tees. Brazilian  trade, — or  its  promise, — brought  Portuguese  to  the  fore 
in  certain  cities,  while  the  nationalistic  urge  from  Ireland  and  commercial 
prospects  in  the  Orient  have  led  to  an  enthusiastic  demand  that  the  schools 
teach  Gaelic  and  Chinese.  In  the  larger  cities  of  the  East  there  are  signs 
that  Poles  and  Czechs  and  Jugo-Slavs  look  yearningly  toward  a  share  in  the 
modern  language  programs  of  the  schools  supported  by  public  funds. 

Under  these  circumstances  it  is  inevitable  that  the  public  mind  should 
be  greatly  confused  as  to  the  purpose  of  modern  language  study.  The 
nationalistic  propaganda  which  the  war  has  so  much  intensified  fills  the  air 
with  its  watchwords  and  seeks  to  make  a  battle-ground  of  our  American 
schools.  Even  those  who  should  be  able  to  take  an  expert  and  objective 
view  of  education  are  often  unclear  in  their  own  minds  as  to  the  object  of 


202         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

teaching  foreign  modern  languages  and  the  choice  of  the  languages  to  be 
taught,  so  that  the  average  teacher  is  left  without  any  proper  idea  of  purpose 
and  method.  School  committees  and  school  principals,  all  too  ready  to 
yield  to  local  political  and  quasi-political  pressure,  are  without  direction  or 
leadership  and  swing  with  the  emotional  currents  of  the  day.  In  view  of  this 
chaotic  condition,  it  may  be  proper  in  the  few  minutes  remaining  to  me  to 
formulate  some  ideas  on  this  matter.  Aside  from  the  importance  of  the 
national  crisis,  there  are  two  considerations  which  make  the  discussion  of  the 
problem  peculiarly  proper  on  this  occasion.  First,  the  great  interest  which 
Mr.  Jefferson  took  ir  instruction  in  the  modern  languages  both  at  William 
and  Mary  and  at  this  institution,  which  was  the  first  in  America  to  teach  the 
modern  languages  as  carefully  as  the  classical;  and,  secondly,  the  distin- 
guished position  which  the  graduates  of  this  University  have  taken  in  the 
service  of  the  nation.  It  is  from  this  standpoint,  that  of  service  to  the 
country  rather  than  that  of  benefit  to  be  derived  by  the  individual,  that 
the  subject  should  be  viewed  in  the  present  crisis. 

From  this  viewpoint,  then,  there  are  three  purposes  from  which  the 
study  of  modern  languages  derives  importance:  for  trade  and  commerce, 
for  scientific  research,  and  for  national  culture.  I  need  make  no  apology 
at  the  present  time  for  placing  the  cultivation  of  our  national  trade  in  the 
first  position,  since  through  its  success  alone  can  the  national  bases  of  wealth 
and  progress  be  made  permanent.  It  is  not  necessary  to  point  out  that  the 
time  has  passed  when  we  can  hope  to  be  self-dependent,  either  as  an  indus- 
trial nation  or  as  a  producer  of  raw  materials.  It  is  well  known  that  even 
before  the  war  the  United  States  was  organized  industrially  to  a  point  where 
foreign  markets  had  become  a  necessity  for  our  factories,  and  the  years  from 
1914-1918  speeded  up  this  organization  until  not  merely  the  prosperity, 
but  even  the  solvency  of  great  communities  in  the  New  England  and  North 
Atlantic  states  and  the  Middle  West  depend  on  gaining  foreign  markets. 
It  is  also  too  well  known  to  repeat  that  the  war  has  made  us  a  creditor 
nation,  something  which  creates  an  entirely  new  dependency  on  the  main- 
tenance of  intimate  relations  with  Europe  and  the  Orient.  In  the  race  for 
the  world's  business  we  shall  now  have  to  strike  into  a  faster  pace  than 
that  which  marked  our  easy-going  methods  of  seven  or  eight  years  ago. 
This  is  perfectly  clear  to  those  who  will  look  across  the  two  oceans  and  see 
how  the  nations  of  the  world  are  stripping  themselves  for  the  conflict. 
The  knowledge  of  foreign  languages  was  not  the  least  of  the  assets  which 
Germany  possessed  before  the  war  and  by  means  of  which  she  was  able  to 
elbow  her  way  into  the  front  rank  of  exporting  nations  after  1895.  That 
is  a  lesson  which  England  especially  has  learned  from  her  rival.  The 
appointment  of  a  committee  to  investigate  modern  studies,  by  Mr.  Asquith 
in  191 6,  and  its  important  report  show  how  fully  the  eyes  of  the  British  had 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         203 

been  opened  to  the  necessity  for  overcoming  the  advantage  which  Germany 
enjoyed  in  this  field  before  the  war.  Unless  American  banks  and  exporters 
and  importers  can  find  young  Americans  who  have  laid  at  least  a  sound  basis 
for  the  command  of  the  leading  languages  of  commerce,  they  will  have  to 
entrust  their  trade  commissions  and  trade  secrets  to  foreigners.  In  the  race 
for  primacy  in  trade  the  two  great  rivals  whom  we  shall  meet  in  every  mar- 
ket are  the  British  and  Germans,  both  of  whom  have  through  their  geo- 
graphical position  superior  advantages' in  learning  modern  languages.  We 
must  not  be  deceived  by  the  fact  that  we  enjoy  for  the  present  advantages  in 
capital  and  the  disposal  of  raw  materials.  The  time  is  not  distant  when 
American  business  will  have  to  meet  the  foreign  trader  on  a  battle-ground 
where  educational  equipment  will  count  as  heavily  as  material  assets. 

The  second  great  national  demand  in  modern  language  instruction 
comes  in  the  field  of  scientific  research.  Both  in  the  natural  sciences  and 
the  human  sciences  America  has  to  create  and  maintain  the  bases 
of  national  greatness.  In  the  steel  industry,  in  textiles,  in  the  chemical 
trades  and  in  every  branch  of  electrical  technique  and  agricultural  chemistry 
and  biology,  an  up-to-date  knowledge  of  the  languages  of  the  other 
great  producing  nations  is  in  a  new  sense  a  part  of  the  alphabet  of  the 
scientist.  The  war  has  made  the  sciences  more  truly  international  than  ever 
and  has  welded  into  an  indissoluble  union  laboratory  experiment  and 
national  production,  both  agricultural  and  industrial.  No  nation  can 
afford  to  rest  its  knowledge  of  what  is  being  accomplished  in  foreign  labora- 
tories to  any  great  extent  on  the  circumlocutory  methods  of  translation. 
Its  scholars,  down  to  the  last  laboratory  assistant,  must  be  trained  in  at 
least  the  chief  languages  of  research.  If  this  is  true  of  the  physical  scientist, 
it  is  equally  true  of  the  historian,  the  economist,  and  the  philosopher.  The 
possibilities  of  national  culture  and  the  ability  for  leadership  depend  on  the 
ability  to  take  part  in  the  great  international  exchange  of  ideas  with  those 
nations  which  aspire  to  leadership  in  civilization. 

National  greatness  depends  not  only  on  factory  and  farm,  on  scient- 
ist's laboratory  and  scholar's  study.  It  depends  also  upon  the  ability  of 
the  great  mass  of  educated  men  and  women,  especially  such  molders  of 
public  opinion  as  clergymen,  journalists,  and  political  leaders,  to  share 
at  least  to  some  extent,  in  the  culture  of  other  peoples.  Some  one  has  said 
that  while  training  makes  men  better  citizens,  culture  makes  them  better 
men.  No  nation,  least  of  all  America,  can  live  to  itself.  We  believe  our- 
selves engaged  in  the  creation  of  a  peculiar  and  original  type  of  national 
culture,  but  the  whole  basis  for  it  in  school  and  college  is  that  European 
culture  from  whose  loins  our  own  has  sprung.  In  this  sense  our  national 
history  is  the  prolongation  of  the  history  of  England,  Holland,  France, 
Germany,  Italy,  and  Spain,  and  to  some  extent  of  the  Scandinavian  North. 


204  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Our  poets  are  the  heirs  of  Burns  and  Tennyson,  to  be  sure,  but  also  of  Dante 
and  Goethe.  Our  drama  is  sprung  from  the  stock  of  the  English  stage, 
from  Shakespere  to  Shaw,  but  also  from  the  French  realists  and  Ibsen 
and  Hauptmann.  Our  novel  traces  a  long  line  of  ancestors,  which  include 
not  only  Fielding  and  Thackeray,  but  also  Cervantes  and  Merimee.  No 
American  national  culture  is  thinkable  that  does  not  rest  on  what  is  best  and 
most  characteristically  national  in  the  civilization  of  Western  Europe, 
none  that  does  not  keep  step  with  the  philosophical,  political,  and  economic 
theory  and  the  belletristic  literature  of  the  great  peoples  across  the  Atlantic. 

The  question  as  to  the  choice  of  modern  languages  for  study  in  the 
American  schools  and  colleges  is  not  one  that  can  be  decided  a  priori. 
America  is  large  and  the  various  contacts  with  it^i  continental  and  trans- 
marine neighbors  make  varying  demands  on  its  business  and  professional 
life.  A  very  strong  reason  for  the  study  of  Spanish  exists  in  the  Gulf  States 
and  Southwestern  states.  The  importance  of  the  Oriental  trade  makes  it 
advisable  to  give  especial  attention  on  the  Pacific  coast  to  the  languages  of 
the  Far  East.  Nevertheless,  for  the  great  bulk  of  American  youth  the  ques- 
tion has  to  be  decided  on  broadly  national  grounds,  with  a  full  consciousness 
of  the  great  significance  of  the  decision.  As  a  rule  our  schools  can  offer  no 
more  than  two  foreign  languages  and  they  do  well,  indeed,  if  they  can  give 
efficient  instruction  in  these.  In  comparison  with  this  last  consideration,  the 
quality  of  instruction,  all  others  are  of  secondary  importance.  It  is  much 
better  to  do  French  or  German  well,  for  instance,  than  to  try  to  do  French  and 
German,  or  French,  German  and  Spanish,  as  has  been  tried  in  many  poorly 
equipped  schools.  It  must  be  remembered  that  while  each  language  has 
concrete  values  and  peculiar  charm,  when  a  choice  is  made,  regard  must  be 
had  to  all  the  factors  of  national  service  that  have  been  outlined  above. 
Thus,  while  Italian  ranks  very  high  for  the  student  of  literature  and  perhaps 
also  of  the  theory  of  the  State,  its  value  in  other  fields  is  in  so  far  negHgible 
that  it  cannot  come  into  consideration  where  the  limit  is  two  languages  for 
the  average  high  school  boy  or  college  boy.  It  must  be  emphasized  also 
that  our  schools  and  colleges  teach  a  European  history  and  civilization  and 
that  we  live  to  a  great  degree  from  a  foreign  trade  that  is  in  the  main  Europ- 
ean, though  increasingly  Latin- American  and  Oriental.  In  the  economy  of 
educational  life  we  are  driven  to  confine  ourselves  to  those  languages  which 
open  widest  the  door  to  all  sides  of  business  and  cultural  possibilities. 

For  purposes  of  general  culture  French  stands  first  for  the  American 
student  as  for  the  youth  of  every  people  in  Europe.  The  justice  of  this  is  so 
generally  recognized  by  all  who  have  any  knowledge  of  the  history  of 
Europe  since  the  Crusades  and  of  present-day  European  conditions  that  it 
seems  unnecessary  to  enlarge  upon  it.  In  assigning  the  second  position  from 
this  standpoint,  one  might  select  Italian,  but  for  one  very  important  con- 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         205 

sideration.  As  French  has  been  for  generations  the  lingua  franca  for  the 
culture  of  Western  Europe,  German  plays  the  same  r61e  to  the  East  of  the 
Rhine  and  north  of  the  Alps.  For  centuries  even  those  nations  which,  like 
the  Poles  and  Czechs,  have  been  in  arms  against  the  German  advance  have 
depended  upon  Germany  as  their  medium  of  communication  with  Western 
Europe  for  all  branches  of  culture  as  well  as  for  business.  The  same  is  true, 
though  to  a  less  degree,  of  the  Scandinavian  peoples,  and  to  an  even  greater 
extent  of  the  peoples  of  the  Eastern  Baltic  and  Russia.  To  their  own 
immense  and  significant  contributions  to  physical  and  historical  theory  and 
economic  theory  and  also  to  those  of  their  neighbors  to  the  East  and  North 
the  Germans  open  a  door  which  must  of  necessity  pass  through  Central 
Europe.  From  the  Scandinavian  tier  of  states,  Ibsen  and  Bjornson  and 
Strindberg  and  such  modems  as  Bojer  and  Nexo  and  Lagerlof  found  their 
way  into  world  literature  first  through  German  translations.  The  same 
is  true  of  Tolstoy  and  Gorki  and  Sienkiewicz  and  of  dozens  of  minor  novelists, 
dramatists,  poets,  and  essayists  of  the  Scandinavian  and  Slavic  world,  many 
of  whom  would  remain  unknown  outside  their  own  vernacular  but  for  the 
busy  German  translators. 

In  the  field  of  science  the  same  is  true.  Here  only  two  languages  really 
come  into  consideration,  German  and  French :  the  latter  through  the  accom- 
plishment of  its  scholars  in  the  fields  of  the  mathematical  and  historical 
sciences,  medicine  and  philosophy;  the  former  through  its  philosophers, 
chemists,  physicists,  biologists,  geologists,  and  mineralogists.  Here  again 
German  plays  a  significant  and  indispensable  rdle  as  the  intermediary  be- 
tween West  and  East.  For  instance,  all  of  the  states  that  came  into  exist- 
ence as  a  result  of  the  dissolution  of  the  Austrian  Empire  and  the  plucking 
off  of  parts  of  old  Russia  have  been  for  many  years  busily  engaged  in  the 
development  of  their  own  national  culture.  The  universities  at  Warsaw  and 
Cracow  and  Lemberg,  at  Dorpat,  Prague,  Agram  and  Budapest  are  centers  of 
a  throbbing  national  culture  that  regards  the  national  language  as  its  most 
cherished  and  distinguished  asset  emblem.  Many  of  these  universities 
have  made  in  the  past  important  contributions  to  the  world's  store  of 
science  and  it  is  probable  that  under  the  present  conditions  these  contri- 
butions will  be  greatly  increased.  For  centuries,  however,  the  Slavic  and 
Hungarian  scholars  have  depended  on  German  to  make  their  discoveries 
known  to  the  western  world.  It  is  not  presumable  that  it  can  ever  be  other- 
wise, for  whatever  political  ties  may  bind  these  peoples  to  England  and 
France,  the  bases  of  their  scientific  and  business  life  rest  on  an  ancient  bi- 
lingual tradition,  in  which  German  holds  its  place  as  the  Koine  of  Eastern 
Europe. 

The  gradation  series  of  importance  for  general  culture  for  American 
students  then  reads,  in  my  opinion,  French,  German,  Italian,  Spanish. 


2o6         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

For  scientific  research  the  position  of  the  two  leading  languages  should 
be  reversed.     In  neither  field  does  Spanish  play  an  important  part. 

Conditions  are,  however,  different  when  we  consider  the  position  of 
America  in  the  field  of  commerce.  Here  indications  point  to  a  relatively 
diminishing  importance  for  French  as  compared  with  the  other  languages. 
Here  Spanish  makes  a  far  stronger  claim  to  consideration,  for  the  spread 
of  the  study  of  Spanish  since  the  war  rests  on  a  solid  basis,  though  perhaps 
not  so  broad  a  one  as  its  more  vociferous  advocates  claim.  Its  importance 
to  be  sure,  lies  mainly  in  the  future,  but  that  there  is  an  immense  and  hither- 
to undreamed-of  responsibility  both  politically  and  commercially  in  our 
relation  to  the  countries  to  the  south  of  us  is  one  of  the  results  of  the  falling 
of  the  scales  from  our  eyes  that  came  after  1914.  That  we  were  once  blind 
in  this  direction  does  not,  however,  excuse  us  for  becoming  blind  in  another 
direction,  for  blind  we  shall  surely  be  if  we  permit  ourselves,  in  view  of  the 
present  disorders  in  Russia  and  Central  Europe,  to  overlook  what  a  great 
share  of  our  national  prosperity  depends  on  the  trade  of  the  part  of  the  world 
whose  Koine  is  German.  In  general,  in  the  choice  of  the  language  to  be 
studied  for  commerce,  some  regard  must  be  had  to  regional  considerations. 
For  the  New  England  and  North  Atlantic  and  North  Central  tier  of  states, 
the  Central  and  Eastern  European  markets  are  of  the  greatest  significance, 
and  even  for  the  cotton-producing  states  of  the  South  the  finger  of  necessity 
points  in  that  direction. 

It  is  far  from  my  purpose  to  be  dogmatic  or  to  do  more  than  to  seek  to 
lay  before  you  the  present  condition  of  affairs  in  modern  language  in- 
struction and  what  seem  to  be  the  fundamental  bases  upon  which  recon- 
struction must  rest.  In  this  hour  of  our  national  history,  when  so  much 
depends  upon  the  discovery  of  means  of  economic  relief  and  cultural  devel- 
opment, the  country  needs  no  ex  parte  statements  or  a  priori  conclusions. 
What  it  does  need  desperately  is  a  broad  survey  of  the  situation  by  patriotic 
men,  among  whom  ought  to  be  included  not  merely  modern  language  experts 
but  practical  educationalists  and  men  of  affairs,  who  shall  go  deeply  into  the 
reasons  and  methods  of  modern  language  study  in  America  and  prepare  a 
program  that  puts  the  needs  of  public  service  in  the  foreground. 

THE  DEMAND  FOR  TEACHERS  OF  FRENCH  AND  SPANISH 
By  H.  Carrington  Lancaster,  Ph.D.,  Johns  Hopkins  University 

When  I  was  asked  to  come  here  to-day  and  offer  some  constructive  criti- 
cism in  order  to  show  how  the  University  would  best  fulfil  its  function  in 
regard  to  the  teaching  of  French  and  Spanish,  I  felt  somewhat  overwhelmed 
by  the  thought  that  the  institution  where  I  learned  to  appreciate  this  field 
of  knowledge  should  turn  to  me  for  suggestions  concerning  it.     But  I  soon 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         207 

came  to  the  conclusion  that  you  really  regard  me  as  one  of  many  scouts 
you  have  been  sending  out  and  that  I  am  now  called  back  to  headquarters 
merely  to  report  on  conditions  as  I  have  found  them.  What  you  prefer  to 
hear  from  me  must  be  the  conclusion  to  which  I  have  come  as  a  result  of 
finding  myself  at  one  of  those  cross  roads  in  academic  life  where  students 
come  to  prepare  themselves  for  the  profession  of  scholar  and  teacher;  and 
college  presidents  to  fill  up  gaps  in  their  faculties, 

From  the  outlook  that  I  get  from  that  observation  post  I  have  no  hesi- 
tation in  saying  that  the  great  need  of  the  profession  just  now  is  student  raw 
material  of  the  quality  that  is  produced  here  at  Virginia.  This  has  not 
always  been  the  case,  for  there  was  a  time  when  our  greatest  need  was  of 
another  sort.  But  in  recent  years  opportunities  for  graduate  study  in  the 
Romance  languages  have  been  greatly  improved.  Universities  are  better 
equipped  in  books  and  scientific  journals.  The  intercollegiate  library  loan 
helps  to  supply  the  books  that  many  institutions  cannot  buy.  There  is  a 
far  greater  variety  of  specialists  than  formerly  in  the  various  fields.  There 
are  more  numerous  reviews  in  which  they  can  publish  their  work.  Oppor- 
tunities for  study  abroad  have  increased  decidedly.  When  I  was  a  student 
it  was  rarely,  if  at  all,  that  a  man  went  to  Europe  on  a  traveling  or  research 
fellowship.  Now  there  are  special  organizations  that  provide  scholarships 
generously  and  many  universities  have  traveling  fellowships  of  their  own. 

Moreover  French  and  Spanish  scholars  are  more  ready  to  cooperate 
with  us  than  they  used  to  be.  American  exchange  professorships,  clubs  like 
the  American  University  Union  in  Paris,  and  most  of  all  the  war  itself  have 
helped  to  bring  us  all  together.  Proposals  are  now  pending  that  may 
enable  Americans  to  study  for  the  doctorat-h-lettres. 

In  our  own  Universities,  as  well  as  in  the  French,  Romance  philology 
and  medieval  literature  are  no  longer  taught  to  the  exclusion  of  modern 
literature,  so  that  another  reason  that  may  formerly  have  kept  students  out 
of  the  Romance  field  has  ceased  to  exist. 

Statistics  recently  published  in  the  Modern  Langimge  Journal,  though 
by  no  means  complete,  illustrate  the  great  increase  among  students  of  these 
subjects.  In  some  109  colleges  and  universities  there  were,  in  1914,  10,177 
students  of  French;  in  1920  there  were  19,501.  In  1914  there  were  only 
2049  students  of  Spanish  in  those  institutions;  in  1920  there  were  12,545. 
Indeed,  whether  we  approve  or  disapprove  of  this  orientation  in  cultural 
studies,  the  fact  is  that  the  public  is  coming  to  look  upon  the  Romance 
languages  next  to  English,  as  the  chief  subject  for  study  among  the  humani- 
ties; upon  the  Romance  languages  with  History  as  the  chief  subjects  by 
which  we  can  learn  to  understand  our  neighbors  in  Europe  and  in  Latin 
America. 

So  large  is  the  number  of  those  who  study  French  in  an  important 


20 8  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

western  university  that  the  department  has  had  to  Hmit  the  size  of  begin- 
ners' sections,  but  the  limit  is  forty!  It  is  superfluous  for  me  to  point  out 
to  you  the  kind  of  results  one  gets  from  classes  of  this  size  unless  one  is  an 
adept  in  the  college  yell  method  of  instruction  which  had,  as  you  remember, 
a  certain  vogue  in  army  camps  a  few  years  ago. 

But  with  even  so  generous  a  limitation  there  are  not  enough  teachers  for 
the  classes.  When  I  left  the  Johns  Hopkins  in  June,  1907,  there  were  only 
two  openings  that  I  had  heard  of  and  I  was  in  a  position  to  hear  of  any  that 
were  reported  to  the  department.  This  year,  my  colleagues  and  I  in  the 
same  department  have  been  written  to  by  the  authorities  in  seven  colleges 
and  nine  universities.  In  the  list  occur  a  number  of  our  leading  institutions 
and  all  of  the  positions  are  such  that  they  would  give  a  satisfactory  start 
to  a  Ph.D  in  Romance  languages.  In  some  cases  we  have  been  able  to 
supply  the  man  or  the  woman  needed,  but  in  most  cases  we  have  not  been 
able  to  do  so.  We  are  considerably  embarrassed  by  our  inability  to  meet 
this  demand.  The  kind  of  man  they  usually  want  is  one  who  understands 
the  American  college  boy,  who  has  been  abroad  enough  to  speak  French  or 
Spanish  with  fluency,  who  can  interpret  a  foreign  literature  and  a  foreign 
civilization  with  understanding,  and  who  has  shown  in  his  own  scholarship 
enough  originality  and  energy  for  him  to  be  counted  on  for  future  additions 
to  the  general  knowledge  of  the  subject. 

Now  we  do  get  Ph.D.  students  who  will  develop  into  this  type  of  man, 
but  we  get  far  too  few.  And  when  I  say  we,  I  do  not  mean  merely  the 
University  with  which  I  am  connected,  for  I  am  sure  you  will  get  the  same 
reply  from  Chicago  and  Princeton,  from  Columbia  and  from  Harvard.  And 
where  are  we  going  to  turn  ? 

Not,  I  think,  to  foreigners  to  any  considerable  extent.  Several  of  them 
are  among  our  leading  scholars  and  teachers,  but  their  numbers  are  strictly 
limited  and  necessarily  so.  Initial  difficulties  with  our  speech,  more  serious 
difficulties  with  our  ways  militate  against  the  success  of  many.  Those  who 
have  already  won  fame  in  their  own  country  are  not  likely  to  leave  it  per- 
manently. We  must,  then,  depend  chiefly  on  Americans,  just  as  France 
depends  upon  Frenchmen  for  instruction  in  English. 

What  we  do  need  is  the  graduate  of  an  American  college  with  enough 
cultural  background  and  capacity  for  work  to  get  his  training  by  graduate 
study  here  and  in  France.  While  I  taught  in  Amherst  College  I  used  every 
year  to  see  men  graduating  that  were  just  the  kind  we  needed,  but  most  of 
them  were  going  into  business.  I  suppose  that  much  the  same  situation  is 
found  here  to-day,  though  I  think  it  was  better  here  in  1903.  I  wonder  if 
something  cannot  be  done  about  it  ?  Certainly  business  is  far  less  attractive 
now  than  it  was  a  year  or  two  ago.  An  economist  said  to  me  the  other  day : 
"It's  a  good  thing  to  have  hard  times  now  and  then ;  if  we  didn't,  everybody 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         209 

would  go  into  business."  I  hope  that  we  can  at  least  take  advantage  of  this 
opportunity,  when  business  does  not  offer  its  former  attractions,  and  put 
before  undergraduates  the  advantages  and  values  of  our  profession. 

And  I  wonder  if  this  task  is  not  particularly  the  province  of  our  Alma 
Mater.  A  French  friend  of  mine  the  other  day,  after  a  visit  to  Mount 
Vernon,  told  me  that  he  had  been  much  impressed  by  the  similarity  between 
the  life  in  Virginia  before  the  Civil  War,  as  he  saw  it  exemplified  there,  and 
life  in  France,  so  much  so  that  he  thought  that  those  who  were  familiar 
with  our  older  culture  would  have  a  special  aptitude  for  understanding 
things  French.  Perhaps  he  was  carried  too  far  by  a  pleasant  visit  to  Vir- 
ginia or  by  his  politeness  to  me,  but  there  is,  after  all,  at  least  this  much 
truth  in  what  he  said.  It  was  particularly  here  in  Virginia  that  a  form  of 
American  civilization  was  developed  in  which,  to  use  a  consecrated  phrase, 
men  were  primarily  interested  in  the  art  of  living,  which  is,  of  course,  the 
essential  vocation  of  the  Romance  peoples.  And  while  we  have  doubtless 
in  many  instances  sold  our  birth-right  for  somewhat  dubious  advantages  of 
another  sort,  there  surely  remains  something  of  the  old  spirit  in  the  state 
and  especially  here  at  the  University.  So  that  is  one  reason  why  one  may 
turn  to  Virginia  with  hope  of  a  genuine  response. 

Another  reason  is — Dr.  Wilson.  If  there  is  anything  that  stands  out  in 
my  memory  of  the  years  I  passed  here,  it  is  the  charm  of  his  teaching.  And 
from  what  the  alumni  tell  me  he  has  never  lost  his  rare  gift  of  making 
Romance  civilization  real  and  vital,  of  inspiring  students  with  a  devotion  to 
the  subject  he  teaches  that  may  carry  them  through  life.  If  then,  you  ask 
me  how  the  University  wiU  best  fulfil  its  function  in  regard  to  Romance 
languages,  I  should  say  that  it  would  be  by  making  a  serious  effort,  under  the 
guidance  of  Dr.  Wilson,  to  interest  men  who  are  graduating  here  in  going  on 
with  post-graduate  work  in  order  to  fit  themselves  for  meeting  the  very 
general  and  insistent  demand  for  teachers  who  are  in  the  best  sense  scholars 
and  interpreters  of  foreign  manners  and  of  foreign  thought. 


ENGLISH  INSTRUCTION  IN  THE  STATE  UNIVERSITY 
By  Morris  P.  Tilley,  Ph.D.,  University  of  Michigan 

At  the  present  time  in  our  country  there  is  going  on  a  re-valuation  of 
educational  methods  in  the  light  of  the  increasing  cost  of  state  instruction. 
A  new  America  is  demanding  a  standard  of  clearer  thinking  and  of  higher 
purpose  on  the  part  of  the  student  who  has  spent  four  years  in  a  state- 
supported  university  or  college.  General  criticism  of  present  results  insists 
upon  a  reexamination  of  university  curricula,  of  administrative  methods, 
of  the  quality  of  teachers,  and  of  the  fitness  of  students  to  whom  is  granted 
14 


210         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

the  privilege  of  state  instruction.  It  is  all  an  effort  to  determine  and  to 
justify  the  final  value  to  the  state  of  the  vast  sums  that  are  now  being  spent 
in  this  country  for  collegiate  and  professional  training. 

This  examination  of  the  value  of  our  present  methods  of  instruction 
comes  at  a  time  when  there  is  an  abnormal  demand  on  the  part  of  thousands 
of  young  men  and  women  for  higher  training  for  their  life  work.  In  order 
to  provide  an  education  for  these  young  people  there  must  be  obtained 
more  classrooms  and  more  teachers !  It  is  a  fitting  time,  therefore,  for  those 
to  whom  has  been  entrusted  the  instruction  of  the  future  leaders  of  our  land 
to  take  counsel  among  themselves  and  try  to  decide  upon  some  means  by 
which  better  results  may  be  obtained.  The  purpose  of  my  paper  is  to 
consider  some  of  the  problems  of  English  teaching  in  the  state  university. 
Among  the  most  insistent  of  these  are  the  necessity,  first,  of  caring  for  the 
freshman  English  work  adequately;  second,  of  securing  instructors  of  suit- 
able qualifications;  and,  third,  of  developing  among  the  members  of  the 
department  a  spirit  of  continuous  growth. 

The  most  pressing  need  to-day  is  that  of  providing  fully  for  the  fresh- 
man work.  This  cannot  be  done  unless  there  is  a  recognition  by  the  admin- 
istration of  the  special  claim  of  the  English  department  for  adequate 
assistance !  It  is  true  that  the  increasing  number,  of  students  since  the  war 
has  affected  the  teaching  conditions  in  all  subjects.  But  no  department  is 
threatened  to  the  same  extent  as  is  the  EngHsh  with  being  submerged  by 
ever  increasing  numbers. 

The  large  classes  and  the  inferior  quality  of  many  of  the  freshmen  are  a 
severe  handicap  to  the  English  instructor  already  burdened  with  themes 
and  conferences.  As  a  result  he  is  unable  to  do  effective  teaching.  The 
first  year  student  is  the  sufferer.  He  fails  to  receive  at  the  beginning  of  his 
course  the  stimulating  instruction  to  which  he  is  entitled. 

To  correct  this  condition  should  be  the  first  aim  of  those  responsible  for 
the  freshman  work  in  English.  It  should  not  be  difficult  by  figures  and  by 
comparisons  to  convince  the  administration  of  the  urgent  need  of  sufficient 
assistance  to  reduce  the  sections  to  twenty-five  students  each.  The  depart- 
ment should  see  to  it,  also,  that  the  more  experienced  and  more  mature 
teachers  share  in  the  instruction  of  the  new  students.  The  number  of  teach- 
ing hours  of  the  younger  men  should  be  reduced,  where  possible,  to  not  more 
than  twelve  a  week.  And  every  effort  should  be  made  to  introduce  into  the 
classroom  such  methods  of  instruction  as  may  be  most  helpful  to  the  student 
who  has  not  yet  had  time  to  adjust  himself  to  college  work. 

To  make  sure  of  small  sections  under  capable  teachers,  however,  is  not 
the  whole  story.  There  is  need  of  considering  further,  whether  the  content 
of  the  course  may  not  be  so  improved  as  to  secure  for  the  freshmen  a  more 
stimulating  appeal.     Notable  experiments  are  being  conducted  this  year  at 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         211 

the  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology  and  at  the  University  of  Miss- 
ouri. These  consist  in  a  combination  of  English  composition  with  history 
and  economics  in  which  the  lectures  and  assigned  readings  supply  the  subject 
matter  of  the  themes.  The  general  aim  of  these  experiments  is  to  give  it  to 
the  writing  in  English  a  more  vital  interest;  and  it  cannot  be  too  highly 
commended.  Indeed,  the  success  attending  these  combination  courses  may 
well  bring  about  a  radical  change  in  the  methods  of  conducting  the  written 
work  in  our  freshmen  English  instruction.  The  outstanding  success  as 
Columbia  of  a  "Contemporary  Civilization  Course,"  that  is  required  of  all 
freshmen,  points  to  the  value  of  organizing  first  year  work  in  such  a  way  that 
the  freshman's  mind  be  forcibly  stimulated. 

If  the  tutorial  system  introduced  some  years  ago  at  Princeton  could  be 
combined  with  a  study  of  selected  English  masterpieces  dealing  with  econo- 
mics, history  and  philosophy,  we  should  then  have  an  arrangement  of  study 
well  calculated  to  stimulate  the  freshman's  mind.  This  course  given  five  or 
six  hours  weekly,  would  go  a  great  way  towards  correcting  the  lack  of  inter- 
est which  marks  much  of  the  freshman's  attitude. 

II 

The  second  problem  that  presents  itself  is  the  difficulty  of  securing  men 
with  the  requisite  qualifications.  The  demand  from  the  over-crowded 
English  departments  of  our  colleges  for  well-prepared  teachers  is  far  greater 
at  present  than  our  graduate  schools  can  supply.  The  standard  of  pre- 
paration and  of  personality  demanded  of  university  instructors,  as  a  result, 
has  been  lowered.  Men  have  been  engaged,  who  a  few  years  ago  would 
not  have  been  thought  eligible  for  vacancies  on  the  teaching  staff. 

But  the  instructor  question  to-day  is  more  than  one  of  lowered  stand- 
ards. The  proportion  of  instructors  to  professors  in  our  faculties  has 
steadily  increased  for  a  number  of  years.  At  the  same  time  the  ratio  of 
students  to  all  members  of  the  teaching  staff  has  tended  to  become  higher. 
In  this  continued  weakening  of  the  teaching  force  there  is  serious  cause 
for  concern.  We  need  seek  no  further  for  an  explanation  of  much  of  the 
criticism  directed  against  university  methods  to-day.  In  view  of  these 
conditions  the  selection  of  instructors  is  vitally  important. 

There  is  a  general  agreement,  I  believe,  in  the  qualifications  desirable 
in  a  university  instructor.  '  The  candidate  selected  should  be  the  man  who 
has  taught  with  the  most  marked  success,  who  has  pursued  his  graduate 
work  with  the  greatest  originality,  and  who  has  the  strongest  and  most 
attractive  personality.  The  one  hundred  per  cent,  man  in  each  of  these 
essential  requirements  is  rare  at  any  time !  Especially  in  a  period  of  read- 
justment like  to-day  it  may  be  necessary  to  be  satisfied  with  a  teacher  who 


212         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

does  not  measure  up  to  the  normal  standard.  But  there  is  a  minimum  in 
teaching  experience,  in  scholarly  work  and  in  personality  below  which  a 
candidate  may  not  fall.  He  should  have  taught  long  enough  to  have  con- 
vinced himself  and  others  that  he  finds  in  teaching  an  abundant  source  of 
satisfaction,  even  joy.  He  should  have  followed  his  graduate  studies  at 
least  to  that  point  where  he  recognizes  that  a  scholar  cannot  continue 
successful  teaching  unless  he  has  an  ever  deepening  knowledge  of  his  own 
particular  field.  And  he  should  have  progressed  so  far  in  the  development 
of  his  personality  as  to  be  able  to  give  freely  of  himself  to  his  students  both 
in  and  out  of  class.  To  consider  the  appointment  to  a  university  faculty 
of  a  man  who  is  known  to  be  deficient  in  any  one  of  these  qualifications  is  a 
serious  mistake ;  and  invites  the  necessity  of  dismissing  him  when  he  breaks 
down  under  the  rigorous  tests  of  success. 

There  has  been  a  tendency,  now  fortunately  passing,  to  weight  exces- 
sively, in  the  selection  of  a  new  instructor,  evidence  that  is  offered  of  ability 
in  research  work.  The  more  important  qualifications  of  character  and  of 
ability  to  teach  have  sometimes  been  overshadowed  by  a  brilliant  doctorate. 
But  numerous  instances  where  the  gifted  Ph.D.  has  failed  to  develop  even 
the  ordinary  instincts  of  the  teacher,  and  other  cases  where  he  has  lacked 
the  basic  elements  of  personal  fitness,  have  caused  a  more  careful  regard 
to  be  given  to  these  requirements.  It  can  be  safely  predicated  that  a 
starved  and  meager  personality  is  not  the  stock  from  which  to  develop  the 
flower  of  a  sympathetic  and  inspiring  teacher,  or  of  an  original  and  forceful 
investigator.  To  every  alumnus  of  the  University  of  Virginia  it  is  a  source 
of  pride  that  the  value  of  an  invigorating  personality  has  been  recognized 
in  its  various  departments. 

It  is  indisputable  that  the  clearer  thinking  and  the  higher  purpose 
demanded  of  college  students  to-day  cannot  be  obtained  unless  their  in- 
structors point  the  way  by  example  and  by  precept.  When  our  faculties 
in  all  ranks  are  made  up  of  men  of  strong  personal  and  scholarly  quali- 
fications, there  will  be  a  corresponding  higher  degree  of  attainment  possessed 
by  the  graduates  of  our  universities. 

We  have  next  to  consider  how  the  candidate  desired  may  be  secured. 
What  are  we  to  offer  him  in  the  way  of  financial  remuneration,  of  oppor- 
tunity for  development,  and  of  certainty  of  advancement  that  will  make  it 
likely  that  we  can  secure  his  service? 

In  the  first  place,  we  must  face  squarely  the  fact  that  the  time  when  we 
could  get  a  competent  man  for  twelve  hundred  dollars  has  gone,  probably 
not  to  return,  A  minimum  sum  of  eighteen  hundred  must  be  offered,  if  we 
are  to  think  of  bidding  for  him  with  the  hope  of  competing  successfully  for 
his  services.  I  know  of  instructors  to  whom  two  thousand  was  paid  last 
year  although  they  had  had  no  experience  in  university  teaching  and  had  not 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         213 

yet  received  their  doctor's  degree.  It  seems  clear  that  we  must  be  prepared 
to  pay  according  to  a  much  higher  scale  in  starting  men  than  we  have  been 
accustomed  to  in  the  past. 

Other  considerations  than  money,  of  course,  will  enter  into  the  accept- 
ance of  a  position.  A  young  man  leaving  a  graduate  school  will  weigh 
carefully  the  opportunities  for  development  presented  by  a  position.  He 
will  consider  in  particular  the  reputation  of  the  men  in  the  department  that 
he  is  asked  to  join,  the  library  facilities  available,  the  number  of  teaching 
hours  required  and  the  character  of  the  work  that  he  is  asked  to  "give." 

If  a  department  is  able  to  offer  a  sufficient  number  of  attractions  to  be 
sure  of  adding  to  its  ranks  only  men  of  first  class  attainments,  it  has  open  to 
it  the  surest  way  to  the  development  of  a  strong  corps  of  teachers.  It  is  the 
department  that  is  not  watchful  of  the  instructors  that  it  adds  to  its  teaching 
staff  that  finds  itself  in  a  few  years  burdened  with  men  that  are  blocks  to 
progress.  Of  such  teachers  few  die  and  none  resign:  and  the  difficulty  of 
dismissing  them  increases  with  their  length  of  service. 

Ill 

The  English  department  that  has  enough  men  and  able  men  to  do  its 
work  has  still  another  problem  before  it.  How  may  it  develop  among  its 
members  that  spirit  of  accomplishment  that  is  not  satisfied  merely  with 
fulfilling  the  obligations  of  teaching,  but  is  determined  to  win  for  itself 
recognition  outside  of  the  university  in  the  world  of  scholarship?  How 
may  it,  in  other  words,  accomplish  the  hard  task  of  contributing  to  the  sum 
of  knowledge  at  a  time  when  the  demands  made  upon  it  in  other  directions 
are  many  and  continuous  ?  I  know  of  no  better  way  of  developing  such  a 
spirit  than  by  a  full  realization  of  the  importance  to  the  department  and  to 
the  university  of  a  faculty  of  men  who  are  esteemed  by  their  fellow- workers 
in  other  institutions  as  leaders  in  their  especial  fields  of  research.  Once 
the  importance  of  such  a  spirit  has  been  realized  there  will  be  an  active  and 
aggressive  emphasis  laid  upon  the  value  of  men  who  are  able  to  show  sub- 
stantial results  in  scholarship. 

It  is  not  possible  for  every  man  to  excel  in  research  work,  and  to  startle 
his  colleagues  by  discoveries  of  value.  But  it  is  necessary  for  a  department 
of  English  to  recognize  that  other  calls  than  those  made  by  his  scholarly 
interest  are  secondary.  The  younger  teachers  especially  must  be  on  their 
guard  against  spending  too  much  of  their  time  on  administrative  affairs. 
The  older  members  on  the  other  hand  are  more  likely  to  rest  upon  their  oars 
and  be  satisfied  with  a  routine  of  teaching.  Threshing  old  straw  year  after 
year,  they  slip  gradually  into  a  condition  of  ineffectiveness.  Security  of 
tenure  and  seniority  of  rank  invite  them  to  an  increasing  inactivity  that 


214         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

undermines  their  own  ability  to  teach  successfully,  and  encourages  a  similar 
inactivity  on  the  part  of  their  younger  colleagues. 

The  members  of  the  English  department  particularly  have  to  hold  con- 
stantly before  them  the  importance  of  scholarly  work.  They  will  otherwise 
find  their  time  consumed  with  instructing  large  classes,  with  the  correction  of 
much  written  work,  with  speaking  engagements  both  within  and  without 
the  university,  with  giving  assistance  to  student  publications  and  dramatic 
organizations  and  with  many  other  activities  of  university  life.  In  the 
face  of  these  accumulating  demands  a  teacher  will  fail  to  attain  his  greatest 
effectiveness  unless  he  keep  clearly  in  mind  the  fact  that  his  duty  of  im- 
parting the  truth  goes  hand  in  hand  with  his  second  duty  of  seeking  the 
truth. 

The  chief  problems,  then,  of  the  English  department  of  the  state  univer- 
sity are  problems  of  personnel.  It  must  have  enough  men,  without  over- 
burdening its  teaching  force,  to  give  the  students  a  sufficiently  intimate 
instruction  to  urge  them  to  their  best  efforts.  It  is  even  more  necessary  that 
it  have  able  and  forceful  teachers,  who  can  at  the  same  time  add  to  the  sum 
of  human  knowledge.  The  successful  English  department  to-day  is  the  one 
which  has  an  adequate  number  of  able  teachers  who  are  at  the  same  time 
able  scholars. 


II.    The  Mathematical  and  National  Science  Group 

PROBLEMS  IN  SCIENTIFIC  EDUCATION 

By  Charles  Lee  Reese,  Ph.D.,  Sc.D.,  Chemical  Director  of  E.  I.  du  Pont  de  Nemours 

AND  Company 

During  the  last  twenty  years,  I  have  had  to  handle  thousands  of  men, 
coming  from  many  institutions  of  learning  throughout  the  country;  in  fact, 
during  the  war  I  had  to  do  with  about  ten  per  cent,  of  all  the  chemists  in  our 
land,  at  least  forty -five  of  them  being  graduates  of  the  University  of  Virginia. 
They  were  men  of  various  degrees  of  training  in  chemistry,  and  conse- 
quently I  have  been  able  to  observe  many  of  their  shortcomings.  Among 
these  might  be  mentioned  a  lack  of  sufficient  training  in  English  to  enable 
them  to  express  their  thoughts,  and  the  results  of  their  work,  in  clear  concise 
language,  a  tendency  toward  what  I  might  call ' '  sloppiness ' '  for  the  lack  of  a 
better  word,  lack  of  thorough  preparation  in  literature  study  before  entering 
upon  a  particular  piece  of  work,  and  even  lack  of  knowledge  as  to  how  to  use 
the  literature,  and  what  kind  of  information  can  be  obtained  from  the 
literature ;  in  other  words,  entering  upon  a  piece  of  work  without  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  state  of  the  art.  The  ability  to  judge  the  value  of  inform- 
ation found  in  the  literature  is  often  found  wanting,  and  I  might  easily  go 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         215 

on  in  such  an  enumeration  regarding  sufficient  training  in  methods  of 
research,  and  lack  of  judgment  in  selecting  the  best  method  of  attack. 
"Sloppiness,"  I  might  almost  say  is  a  characteristic  of  the  American 
people,  due  to  the  fact  that  they  are  almost  always  in  a  hurry  to  get  through 
with  what  they  are  doing  in  order  to  take  up  something  else,  a  tendency 
which  prevents  thoroughness.  Our  primary  schools  are  affected  by  it, 
attempting  generally  to  fill  the  heads  of  the  pupils  with  knowledge,  instead 
of  training  the  mind  to  habits  of  care,  accuracy  and  efficiency.  Even  our 
college  entrance  requirements  are  possibly  responsible  for  too  much  pressure 
for  knowledge  rather  than  training.  The  Germans  have  overcome  this 
tendency  by  making  machines  out  of  their  school  children,  and  it  is  question- 
able how  far  we  should  go  in  this  direction.  When  I  was  at  the  University 
it  was  said  that  it  took  all  of  a  man's  first  year  to  learn  how  to  study,  and 
some  of  them  never  learn,  consequently  many  never  reach  their  senior 
year. 

Now  to  come  down  to  the  college  work.  Most  important  of  all  is  the 
personality  of  the  teaching  staff,  and  the  effect  of  that  personality  on  the 
attitude  of  the  student  to  his  work.  I  have  always  felt  that  the  under- 
graduate should  have  personal  contact  with  the  principal  men  of  the  faculty, 
the  men  who  are  most  inspiring  from  a  moral  as  well  as  a  professional  stand- 
point ;  men  who  are  character  builders  and  leaders  who  inspire  confidence 
and  interest  in  the  work.  As  a  friend  of  mine  once  said  in  speaking  of 
college  athletics  creating  loyalty  and  college  spirit,  why  should  the  work 
not  be  made  just  as  interesting,  and  as  much  enthusiasm  be  created  over  it 
as  over  athletics.  This  can  only  be  done  by  the  ability  of  the  professors  to 
create  such  interest  and  enthusiasm.  Mallet,  Remsen  and  Bunsen  were 
men  of  this  type  in  my  day,  and  no  doubt  there  are  many  to-day  of  the  same 
kind.  Owing  to  our  hurried  life,  and  the  desire  and  necessity,  in  many 
cases,  for  men  to  reach  the  bread  winning  stage,  too  many  men  enter  the 
profession  without  that  liberal  education  included  in  the  old-time  college 
course,  involving  modern  and  ancient  languages,  physics,  mathematics, 
arts  and  letters,  history  and  philosophy,  which  fit  a  man  for  the  higher 
side  of  life,  and  I  wish  to  emphasize  the  importance  of  such  training  wherever 
possible  before  a  man  enters  upon  the  pursuit  of  his  professional  course. 
This  applies  to  the  chemist,  the  physicist,  the  lawyer,  the  engineer,  as  well 
as  the  business  man,  or  a  man  in  any  other  walk  of  life.  I  am  quite  sure 
that  the  chemist  who  has  had  such  an  education  will  forge  ahead  much  faster 
than  his  less  fortunate  fellow-chemist.  With  this  kind  of  training  a  man 
is  in  a  much  better  position  to  determine  the  professional  career  best  suited 
to  him. 

There  has  been  during  the  past  thirty  years  a  tendency  to  make  the 
training  of  chemists  more  practical,  as  they  say,  and  many  committees  have 


2i6         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

been  appointed  to  study  and  recommend  courses  of  training  for  technical 
chemists.  I  have  often  been  asked  by  professors  and  students  to  outUne  a 
course  of  study  for  a  chemist  who  wishes  to  enter  the  explosives  or  dyes 
industry  for  instance,  and  my  reply  has  invariably  been  to  teach  them 
chemistry,  physics,  mathematics  and  English,  and  the  experience  and 
application  will  come  fast  enough  when  they  are  up  against  the  problems  to 
be  met  in  any  industry. 

There  is  at  present  a  tendency  to  make  a  compromise  between  the 
liberal  education  and  the  professional  education  to  meet  the  undoubted 
demand,  and  those  of  you  who  will  read  the  Yale  Alumni  Weekly  of 
April  29th,  will  see  what  Yale  expects  to  do  in  her  four-year  course  in 
Chemistry. 

In  their  Freshman  year,  besides  their  usual  course  in  Chemistry,  they 
have  English,  Language,  History,  Mathematics  and  Government.  In  the 
Sophomore  year  much  stress  is  laid  on  Mathematics  and  Physics,  as  well  as 
Mineralogy  and  Crystallography  with  English  and  the  Languages,  also 
electives  in  Drawing  and  Bacteriology.  The  Juniors  devote  seventy  per 
cent  of  their  time  to  Chemistry,  with  some  Geology,  and  as  new  features, 
very  important  courses  in  Economics  and  Business  Finance  are  introduced. 
The  Seniors  devote  most  of  their  time  to  Chemistry,  with  lectures  on 
Industrial  Chemistry,  Metallurgy  and  Metallography,  with  a  chemical 
seminar  and  a  course  in  Business  Management  as  a  supplement.  As  elec- 
tives, they  have  courses  in  Statistics,  Business  Law  and  Principles  of 
Accounting. 

When  I  was  here  we  had  General  Industrial,  Analytical  and  Agricultural 
Chemistry,  with  a  short  course  in  Pharmaceutical  Chemistry  for  the 
"Meds." 

General  Chemistry  included  lectures  on  Physics,  Organic  and  Inorganic 
Chemistry.  Industrial  Chemistry  was  a  most  comprehensive  lecture  course 
on  the  subject,  and  has  proved  of  inestimable  value  to  me  in  my  career. 
Physical  Chemistry,  as  a  subdivision,  was  hardly  known  then,  but  now  has 
grown  to  be  one  of  the  most  important  branches  of  the  science,  and  Organic 
Chemistry  was  in  its  youth  in  this  country.  The  word  ' '  Colloid  "  was  used 
in  contradistinction  to  "Crystalloid,"  but  Colloid  Chemistry  was  still  to  be 
born,  and  it  has  hardly  yet  got  out  of  its  swaddling  clothes.  Catalysis  was  a 
name  for  the  unknown,  and  if  you  should  hear  Dr.  Bancroft  deliver  his  three 
celebrated  lectures  on  that  subject,  you  would  learn  that  the  theories  of 
Catalysis  are  mainly  postulatory,  and  most  of  the  postulates  advanced  can 
be  disposed  of,  in  spite  of  which  many  important  discoveries  and  accomplish- 
ments have  been  attained  through  Catalysis,  and  I  believe  I  can  safely  say 
that  it  presents  as  fertile  a  field  for  research  as  any  other  field  in  the  chemical 
science. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         217 

It  has  been  suggested  that  I  say  what  I  think  the  opportunities  of  the 
Universities  are  in  the  future,  and  how  they  best  can  be  realized,  especially 
as  regards  graduate  work  in  pure  and  applied  chemistry. 

What  I  have  already  said  is  perhaps  more  or  less  generalization,  but  it 
expresses  thoughts  that  I  have  had  for  sometime,  and  you  will  forgive  me  if 
I  have  taken  this  opportunity  to  express  them. 

The  fields  of  natural  science  covered  by  the  Academic  and  Graduate 
Schools  at  present  are  Astronomy,  Biology,  Chemistry,  Geology  and  Phy- 
sics, to  all  of  which  Chemistry  is  related  to  a  greater  or  less  degree,  for  we 
are  able  to  apply  Chemistry  even  to  the  stone.  Physiological,  Biological, 
Pathological  and  Pharmacological  Chemistry  seem  to  be  included  inciden- 
tally in  the  Medical  Department.  In  the  chemical  courses  we  have  General, 
Analytical,  Organic,  Physical,  Colloidal,  Industrial,  Agricultural,  Theoreti- 
cal, Metallurgical  and  Physiological,  all  covered  by  a  few  men,  and  these 
same  men  must  take  care  of  the  post-graduate  work  in  any  of  these  sub- 
divisions, if  required.  Attempts  are  made  in  other  institutions  to  cover 
special  subjects  such  as  ceramics,  cements,  dyestuffs  and  dyeing,  electro- 
chemistry, fermentation,  photography,  etc.  Without  a  very  large 
staff,  I  doubt  the  advisability  of  undertaking  such  special  subjects,  and  even 
then  a  man  properly  trained  in  the  principles  and  practice  of  the  science  will 
soon  become  expert  in  these  special  lines  after  once  being  connected  with  the 
industry,  and  his  future  training  in  these  lines  can  thus  be  carried  on  after 
he  becomes  a  bread  winner. 

The  Endowment  Fund  will  assist  materially  in  many  ways,  but  first 
of  all  it  should  be  used  to  increase  the  compensation  of  the  present  members 
of  the  teaching  staff  to  give  them  a  living  compensation,  and  the  ability  to  set 
something  aside  for  a  rainy  day,  and  also  enable  the  University  to  secure 
the  services  of  able  men  in  the  futiire.  Second,  to  increase  the  teaching 
staff  to  such  a  point  that  they  will  have  time  to  devote  to  study  and  research 
work,  and  enable  them  to  gain  reputations  which  will  induce  students  to 
remain  at  the  University  for  post-graduate  work,  and  attract  men  from 
other  institutions  to  study  under  such  men.  At  present  the  number  in  the 
post-graduate  schools  is  small,  but  owing  to  the  great  impetus  which  has 
been  given  in  this  country  to  the  pursuit  of  the  natural  sciences,  especially 
Physics  and  Chemistry  by  the  late  war,  the  establishment  of  the  Dye 
Industry  and  the  Chemical  Warfare  Service  will  create  increasing  demands 
for  many  men  thoroughly  trained  in  these  sciences,  especially  in  the  fields 
of  fundamental  and  applied  research,  so  there  is  room  for  growth  in  the 
University  in  this  direction. 

I  hope  to  see  the  day,  or  at  least  the  day  will  come,  when  the  University 
can  have  professors  who  can  specialize  in  each  subdivision  of  the  sciences; 
men  who  will  have  only  a  few  hours  each  week  to  devote  to  the  lecture  room 


2i8         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

and  the  seminar,  and  much  time  to  devote  to  research  and  study,  and 
become  leaders  in  research,  and  developing  methods  of  research  which  will 
draw  to  them  a  group  of  students  devoted  to  their  particular  specialty.  It 
is  only  by  such  methods  that  rapid  progress  can  be  made  in  our  search  for  the 
truth,  and  advance  in  science  and  the  arts.  It  is  as  important  for  our  great 
universities  to  develop  great  men  in  the  field  of  professors  and  teachers ;  men 
who  can  devote  their  entire  time  to  the  search  for  truth  in  the  fields  of 
natural  science,  as  it  is  to  develop  the  young  men  of  our  country  to  practice 
their  profession  in  their  particular  fields,  for  the  former  is  essential  to  the 
latter. 

With  the  establishment  of  such  highly  developed  scientific  industries 
as  the  dye  industry,  and  the  recent  tendency  to  utilize  science  in  all  indus- 
tries, many  such  men  as  I  feel  the  universities  should  develop  will  be  utilized 
in  the  industries. 

As  the  industries  become  more  and  more  highly  developed,  they  will 
need  more  highly  trained  men  in  the  special  subdivisions  of  the  sciences. 
The  present  demand  for  highly  trained  specialists  in  the  industries  is  a  seri- 
ous menace  to  our  country  and  the  world,  and  if  our  great  universities  are  to 
maintain  their  force  of  such  men  to  train  others,  this  can  only  be  done  by 
ample  provision  for  their  support.  This  brings  me  to  a  point  where  I  wish  to 
bring  up  for  discussion  a  plan  which  I  have  been  able  to  follow  in  a  few  cases 
for  relieving,  to  a  small  degree,  this  serious  situation.  It  is  a  plan  which 
has  been  followed  extensively  in  Europe.  An  industry,  with  or  without 
a  very  complete  research  organization,  can  profitably  retain  professors,  who 
have  made  reputations,  at  a  salary  which,  in  some  cases,  may  exceed  that 
which  they  receive  from  the  university,  by  consulting  work.  This  has 
proved  of  great  advantage  to  the  professor  himself,  not  only  from  a  financial, 
but  also  from  a  professional  point  of  view  in  his  work  for  the  university,  and 
of  great  advantage  to  the  university.  Of  course  this  should  be  done  with 
the  distinct  understanding  that  the  consulting  work  is  not  to  interfere  in  any 
way  with  duties  to  the  University.  The  unselfish  character  of  some  of  our 
consultants  has  been  demonstrated  by  the  fact  that  one  of  them  has  used  his 
retainer  to  employ  a  man  to  carry  on  some  of  his  work. 

The  research  student  is  much  benefited  by  the  presence  of  a  number  of 
others  in  the  laboratory  doing  research  work,  whether  in  the  same  or  other 
branches  of  science,  or  divisions  of  his  science.  It  makes  it  possible  for  each 
to  be  familiar  with  a  number  of  problems,  and  the  method  of  prosecuting 
them,  and  increases  the  value  of  the  seminar. 

In  closing  I  want  to  thank  you  for  your  indulgence,  and  although  there 
is  nothing  very  striking  in  what  I  have  had  to  say  I  hope  it  may  lead  to  some 
discussion  which  will  be  constructive,  and  of  value  to  our  Alma  Mater  in  the 
future. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         219 

A  PLEA  FOR  THE  PERFECT 
By  William  Jackson  Humphreys,  Ph.D.,  of  the  United  States  Weather  Bureau 

The  most  insistent  appeal  to  the  intellect,  and  the  most  effective  in 
every  line  of  human  progress,  is  the  call  of  the  perfect.  The  paintings  of  the 
great  masters  arouse  an  admiration  akin  to  reverence,  and  inspire  us  our- 
selves to  work  for  the  faultless  in  whatever  we  do.  And  the  same  is  true  of 
architecture.  He  that  has  an  intelligence  at  all  measurably  above  that  of  the 
beast  of  the  field  is  himself  ennobled  by  the  presence  of  a  beautiful  building. 
The  towering  spires  of  a  Gothic  cathedral,  the  stately  columns  of  a  Grecian 
temple,  the  restful  roof  of  a  Buddhist  shrine,  evoke  alike  a  reverence  and  a 
high  resolve  to  live  the  better  life. 

In  statuary,  too,  and  in  every  other  art,  the  compelling  call  is  the  same. 
Who  can  behold  that  most  wonderful,  perhaps,  of  all  statues,  the  Dai- 
butsu  of  Kamakura,  and  not  be  thrilled  by  its  magical  calm — the  peace  of 
Nirvana,  the  calm  of  death  and  eternity? 

As  it  is  in  these  few  great  things  and  noble  arts,  so  it  is  likewise  with  all 
the  others,  perfection  and  perfection  alone — accomplishment  in  which  no 
fault  can  be  found — commands  unqualified  admiration  for  the  work  of 
others,  and  sets  the  satisfying  goal  of  our  own  endeavors. 

And  now  let  us  come  home  and  be  more  specific.  We  here  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia  are  wont  to  speak  of  the  Sage  of  Monticello  in  tones  that 
evidence  respect  and  appreciation.  But  how  did  he  come  to  be  a  sage? 
Not  alone  by  his  invariable  honesty  of  purpose,  nor  solely  by  his  splendid 
ability;  but  in  great  measure  through  his  transcendent  capacity  to  take 
trouble — his  patience  to  make  perfect.  And  that  over  which  he  labored  the 
longest,  the  University  of  Virginia,  he  loved  the  most.  He  realized,  as  all  of  us 
must,  that  without  intellectual  training  political  independence  is  impossible, 
and  religious  freedom  only  moral  chaos.  Thus  the  most  patient  labor  of  all 
his  maturer  years,  the  labor  of  his  deepest  love  and  most  abiding  hope,  was 
the  founding  of  an  educational  institution  perfect  in  all  its  plans  and  pur- 
poses. An  institution  in  which  the  student  was  from  the  first  trusted  as  a 
man  of  honor,  a  trust  promptly  justified  and  that  has  become  a  priceless 
heritage;  an  institution  manned  by  scholars  of  high  renown  who  mingled 
freely  and  most  friendly  with  those  who  came  to  learn  of  their  wisdom ;  and, 
finally,  an  institution  whose  very  columns  and  arches  and  domes,  whose 
harmonious  assemblage  of  much  of  the  architectural  glory  of  Greece  and 
grandeur  of  Rome,  insistently  inspires  to  higher  resolves. 

Here,  as  nowhere  else,  one  comes  under  the  abiding  influence  of  the 
father  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  of  him  who  heard  so  clearly  and  heeded 
so  well  the  call  of  the  perfect.  Here  thousands  have  heard  that  same  call, 
and  many  have  heeded  in  their  several  ways.     Here,  we  believe,  this  call 


220         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

was  ever  present  with  him  who  has  enriched  literature,  as  long  as  man  shall 
read,  with  such  compelling  and  varied  classics  as  The  Bells,  The  Raven,  and 
Annabel  Lee.  Here,  too,  all  was  in  harmony  with  the  firm  resolve  and  high 
purpose  of  him  who  but  yesterday  bade  a  despairing  world  to  hope — ^bade 
it  hope  by  showing  so  clearly  a  rational  and  righteous  road  every  nation  can 
follow,  and  yet  in  some  fashion  will  follow,  for  civilization  shall  not  perish 
from  the  face  of  the  earth. 

Were  half  the  power  that  fills  the  world  with  terror, 
Were  half  the  wealth  bestowed  on  camps  and  courts, 

Given  to  redeem  the  human  mind  from  error, 
There  were  no  need  of  arsenals  and  forts. 

So  reasoned  the  poet  Longfellow  many  years  ago,  and  the  case  is  miser- 
ably worse  to-day.  The  burdens  of  taxation  are  oppressively  heavy.  Some 
say  owing  to  the  scientific  work  done  by  the  National  Government,  aye,  even 
to  the  duplication  of  such  work  in  the  city  of  Washington !  ' '  Blind  leaders, 
who  strain  at  a  gnat,  and  swallow  a  camel."  Had  the  world  not  been  filled 
with  terror,  had  there  been  no  "wealth  bestowed  on  camps,"  the  present 
tax  on  one  luxury  alone,  tobacco,  would  meet,  or  nearly  meet,  the  whole  of 
the  Government's  needs — nor  is  this  tax  overly  heavy,  nor  are  our  people 
inordinate  burners  of  incense  before  the  goddess  Nicotine. 

The  burdens  of  the  world  would,  indeed,  be  unbearable  were  it  not 
becoming  clear  as  the  noonday  sun  that  they  are  avoidable,  and  that,  being 
avoidable,  they  soon  will  be  avoided.  We  are  but  in  the  throes  of  one  stage 
of  community  evolution,  an  evolution  from  the  isolated  savage  through 
the  tribe,  the  clan,  the  state  and  the  nation  to  the  federation  of  the  civilized 
world,  an  evolution  that  has  always  closely  followed,  and  of  necessity  must 
closely  follow,  the  development  of  the  arts  of  travel  and  communication. 
That  is,  as  science  progresses  and  its  applications  are  made  perfect  our 
relations  to  each  other  whether  as  individuals,  communities,  or  nations,  also 
vary.  To  the  ignorant  savage  restricted  by  natural  barriers  to  a  small 
island,  or  other  limited  territory,  no  form  of  government  is  desirable  or  possi- 
ble beyond  that  of  a  primitive  tribe.  To  the  most  advanced  peoples  of 
to-day,  however,  those  who  literally  can  talk  to  each  other  though  at  the  ends 
of  the  earth,  and  to  whose  swift  and  easy  travel  there  is  no  obstacle,  the 
restrictions  of  the  tribe  and  the  clan  would  be  intolerable  and  impracticable. 
To  them  nothing  short  of  some  form  of  a  universal  federation  can  be  satis- 
factory. One's  friends  and  acquaintances  to-day,  and  his  councillors  and 
aids  in  whatever  he  is  doing,  are  in  every  inhabited  portion  of  the  globe. 
We  cannot  do  without  each  other,  neither  they  without  us  nor  we  without 
them.     Hence  our  plea  for  the  perfect  includes  the  bringing  of  nations  to- 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         221 

gether  into  that  form  of  mutual  support  that  most  encourages  the  growth 
of  each  and  makes  for  the  good  of  all. 

Now,  as  is  known  of  the  whole  world,  in  the  great  work  of  formulating 
a  code  adapted  to  the  needs  and  aspirations  of  those  in  the  very  van  of 
civilization  the  University  of  Virginia  can  claim  high  honors.  First, 
through  her  great  "father"  and  again,  equally,  through  her  most  distin- 
guished alumnus. 

But  let  us  be  critical,  for  self-criticism  is  always  wholesome.  What 
has  been  the  growth  of  science  and  its  application  to  the  arts  since  our 
Alma  Mater  began  her  splendid  training  of  young  men,  less  than  one  century 
ago  ?  And  what  part  have  we,  her  alumni,  taken  in  this  conquest  of  nature  ? 
Every  chapter  in  the  story  of  modern  science  is  amazing  almost  beyond 
belief.  We  live  to-day  in  essentially  a  different  world  from  that  of  our 
grandfathers,  different  in  many  respects  from  even  that  of  our  own  boyhood 
days;  and  the  difference  is  this,  that  the  world  is  a  better  place  to  live  in 
than  it  was,  so  much  so,  indeed,  that  many  of  the  things  we  now  regard 
as  common  necessities  only  a  little  while  ago  were  not  possible  even  as 
luxuries. 

Consider  some  of  the  more  common  events  in  the  course  of  one's  daily 
life.  All  of  us  remember,  or,  at  least,  know  those  who  do  remember,  when 
that  morning  necessity,  the  ubiquitous  bathtub,  was  practically  unknown. 
Of  course  a  few  buckets  of  water,  carried  from  the  spring  and  emptied  into 
the  old  wash-tub,  were  really  worth  while,  but  the  undertaking  was  such  a 
tax  on  one's  moral  courage,  that  baths  before  breakfast  were  not  then  the 
order  of  the  day.  And  the  cooking  of  breakfast,  what  a  job  it  was !  Coals, 
kept  alive  through  the  night  by  a  cover  of  ashes,  were  scraped  out  and  a 
wood  fire  kindled,  not  in  the  convenient  stove,  for  no  one  had  such  a  con- 
trivance, but  in  a  big  fire  place,  and  after  a  time  one  had  something  to  eat. 
Rarely,  though,  did  he  have  fresh  meat  (cold  storage  was  unknown)  nor  did 
he  ever  have  the  luxury  of  fresh  fruits  and  fresh  vegetables  save  those 
alone  that  grew  in  his  own  locality,  nor  even  these  except  in  their  limited 
season.  Who  of  the  first  faculty,  or  early  students,  of  this  University  ever 
wholesomely  and  delightfully  began  his  breakfast  with  grape-fruit,  oranges, 
pineapples,  mangos,  or  any  other  of  the  delicious  tropical  fruits  that  now 
load  our  tables  ?  And  who  in  the  tropics  ever  then  tasted  an  apple,  a  pear, 
a  peach,  a  plum,  or  a  cherry?  Who  in  those  days,  here  or  elsewhere,  ever 
feasted  on  that  luscious  and  most  common,  perhaps,  of  all  vegetables,  the 
tomato — then  regarded  as  a  thing  not  only  unfit  for  food,  but  even  deadly 
poisonous  ? 

If,  as  was  sometimes  the  case,  you  had  occasion  to  write  to  a  friend, 
you  did  so  with  a  goose-quill  pen,  blotted  with  sand,  sealed  with  wax,  and 
forwarded  your  letter  at  the  marvelous  speed  of,  perhaps,  twenty  miles  a 


222  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

day.  If  you  had  to  talk  to  even  a  neighbor,  and  he  was  beyond  hallooing 
distance,  you  simply  had  to  go  in  person  to  see  him,  and,  whatever  the  dis- 
tance, you  could  only  walk,  ride  horseback,  or  go  in  a  lumbering  carriage. 

If  mother  wanted  to  dye  a  piece  of  cloth  she  herself,  most  likely,  had 
spun  and  woven,  she  did  not  choose  exactly  the  hue  and  tint,  or  shade,  she 
would  have  and  then  send  us  to  a  convenient  drug  store  to  get,  for  a  few 
pennies,  precisely  that  thing,  but  sent  us  to  the  woods  for  the  inner  bark  of  a 
black  oak.  This  she  steeped  according  to  traditional  custom,  then  dipped 
the  cloth  in  the  decoction  thus  obtained,  and  accepted  with  fortitude 
whatever  stain  happened  to  result. 

Of  course  we  did  not  often  become  ill,  for  only  the  most  robust  survived 
babyhood,  but  when  we  did  get  sick  it  generally  was  the  herb  doctor  that 
came  to  see  us,  and  the  concoctions  he  made  at  least  inspired  an  earnest  hope 
for  a  rapid  convalescence.  If,  perchance,  the  case  called  for  surgery,  we 
were  indeed  unfortunate.  What  we  now  call  major  surgery,  and  even  much 
that  is  essentially  minor,  was  rarely  ventured.  Small  operations  of  course 
were  made,  but  on  the  conscious  patient  and  with  a  dirty  knife.  There  were 
no  hospitals,  except  in  the  largest  cities,  and  even  these  were  at  times  centers 
of  infection  rather  than  restorative  institutions. 

Whether,  however,  one  got  sick  in  those  days  and  sent  for  the  neighbor- 
hood herbist,  or  stayed  well  and  hoed  the  corn,  pealed  bark  to  dye  the  home 
spun,  or  did  whatever  other  chores  the  exigencies  of  a  primitive  life  de- 
manded, the  end  of  the  day  at  last  came  as  it  now  comes.  But  when  it  did 
come  there  was  then  no  movie  to  go  to,  whether  instructive,  amusing,  or 
demoralizing ;  no  graphophone  to  stage  a  grand  opera,  materialize  a  brass  band, 
or  set  amuck  a  barbaric  jazz,  as  one's  whims  and  fancies  might  suggest ;  no 
phone  to  chat  over;  no  good  light,  electric  or  other  kind,  to  read  by — only  a 
flickering  home-made  tallow  candle,  or  sputtering  pine  torch,  that  for  a 
few  minutes  flared  up  unsteadily  and  then  went  out.  Finally,  at  the  end  of 
every  such  "perfect  day,"  one  scraped  the  live  embers  together  and  covered 
them  with  ashes  for  starting  the  morning's  fire,  saw  that  all  windows  were 
closed  tight,  the  door  bolted,  and  every  other  possible  ventilator  sealed  up 
lest  any  of  the  "noxious  night  air"  might  get  in,  and  then  went  to  sleep,  to 
dream,  perhaps,  of  witches  and  hobgoblins,  in  a  bed  as  innocent  of  springs  as 
a  concrete  floor. 

True,  we  often  speak,  and  speak  earnestly,  of  the  good  old  days  of  yore, 
but  in  so  doing  we  really  have  in  mind  the  buoyancy  of  our  own  vigorous 
youth  and  the  loved  ones  of  our  childhood  days.  We  never  mean  that  we 
would  like  to  discard  the  latest  conveniences  and  go  back,  not  to  our  earlier 
age,  for  all  of  us  would  like  to  be  young  again,  but  to  the  way  the  world  lived 
only  a  few  decades  ago. 

Perhaps  this  reference  to  a  few  decades  may  seem  extravagant,  but  in 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  223 

reality  it  is  not,  for  our  knowledge  of  nature  and  the  harnessing  of  natural 
forces  to  our  own  needs  grew  so  rapidly,  and  with  such  acceleration,  with  the 
founding  of  laboratories  and  the  consequent  spread  of  inquiry  that  men 
still  living  have  seen  half,  aye,  more  than  half,  of  that  wonderful  evolution 
from  the  stick  and  stone  of  the  cave  man  to  the  myriad  marvels  of  the  pres- 
ent. Take  from  the  air  every  aeroplane;  from  the  roads  every  automobile; 
from  the  country  every  train ;  from  the  cities  every  electric  light ;  from  ships 
every  wireless  apparatus;  from  the  oceans  all  cables;  from  the  land  all 
wires ;  from  shops  all  motors ;  from  office  buildings  every  elevator,  telephone 
and  typewriter;  let  epidemics  spread  at  will;  let  major  surgery  be  impossible 
— all  this  and  vastly  more  would  be  the  terrible  catastrophe  if  the  tide  of 
time  should  but  ebb  to  the  childhood  days  of  men  still  living. 

Nor  do  all  those  marvels  exhaust  our  list.  Give  us  a  lump  of  coal,  a 
piece  of  sulphur  and  a  bit  of  salt,  and  we  will  now,  as  but  a  few  years  ago 
we  could  not,  work  such  wonders  as  even  Aladdin  with  his  magical  lamp 
never  dreamed  of — make  brighter,  faster  and  more  varied  colors  than  are 
found  in  field  or  forest;  sweeter  perfumes  than  scent  the  flowers;  richer 
flavors  than  season  the  fruit ;  food  for  plants  that  shames  the  richest  soil ; 
explosives  that  rend  the  hardest  rock;  cures  for  many  an  ill;  and  poisons 
more  deadly  than  ever  a  Borgia  desired.  In  short,  with  even  these  few  raw 
materials,  we  now  raise  our  food,  delight  the  palate,  adorn  the  body,  cure 
ourselves,  and  kill  the  enemy ! 

Oh  yes,  the  scoffer  of  science  may  say,  but  no  exploring  De  Soto  has 
ever  found  the  elixir  of  life.  No,  we  must  confess,  not  yet  in  all  its  per- 
fection, but  the  persistent  biologist  has  found  it  for  some  animals,  and  has 
successfully  applied  it.  Already  he  has  made  excised  portions  of  the  heart 
of  the  embryo  chick  live  and  grow  until  the  chick  itself,  had  it  been  per- 
mitted to  grow  up,  might  well  have  been  dead  of  age — and  still  that  lone, 
excised  heart  lived  on .  Already  well-organized  animals  have  been  made  to  live 
forwards  and  backwards  from  youth  to  ag^  and  from  age  to  youth  over  and 
over  with  never  a  sign  that  the  end  was  near.  What  then  is  beyond  our 
reasonable  hope  ?  But  to  realize  that  hope  we  must  heed  the  call  of  the  per- 
fect, must  push  those  investigations,  as  surely  we  shall,  and  the  thousands 
of  others  they  in  turn  suggest,  to  their  ultimate  conclusion. 

Finally,  what  have  we,  faculty,  students,  and  alumni,  of  this  University, 
been  doing  the  while  this  great  stream  of  investigation  and  discovery  has 
been  broadening  and  deepening  into  a  veritable  ocean  of  knowledge?  We 
have  made  many  contributions  to  this  knowledge,  and  of  that  we  are  justly 
proud,  but  not  all  of  us  have  lived  up  to  our  opportunities. 

Let  us,  therefore,  insist  that  each  important  position  in  this  University 
is  an  opportunity,  as  it  is  in  any  leading  institution,  to  add  to  the  sum  of 
human  knowledge,  and  that  opportunity  is  only  another  name  for  impera- 


224  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

tive  duty.  Let  it  further  be  recognized,  indeed  let  it  become  a  compelling 
unwritten  law,  that  opportunity  shall  be  given  only  to  him  who  has  demon- 
strated his  ability  to  improve  it,  and  that  the  shirking  of  duty  carries  with  it 
the  forfeiture  of  place.  Possibly  such  a  custom  might  seem  a  little  drastic, 
but  it  would  be  no  more  so,  nor  is  there  less  reason  for  it,  than  is  the  whole- 
some honor  system  among  students.  Nor  let  us  alumni  require  ought  of 
others  that  we  do  not  in  equal  measure  demand  of  ourselves. 

But  how,  it  occasionally  is  asked,  can  any  man  both  investigate  and 
teach  ?  A  far  better  question  is  this :  How  can  he  teach  advanced  students, 
at  least,  if  he  has  not  that  love  of  his  subject  that  compels  him  to  investi- 
gate? None  but  the  enthusiast  can  impart  to  others  an  earnest  desire 
to  learn — ^blood  does  not  come  from  turnips.  Furthermore,  wherever  the 
spark  of  genius  shows,  and  if  it  be  accompanied  by  industry,  in  the  name  of 
humanity  fan  it — give  its  possessor  every  needed  aid  and  encouragement. 
Fan  the  live  spark.  No  one  ever  yet  got  a  glowing  fire  by  fanning  dead 
embers. 

And  here  let  us  once  more  urge  our  plea  for  the  perfect.  Let  an  investi- 
gation, whether  large  or  small,  be  given  ample  time,  patience,  and  trouble. 
Let  it  be  so  worked  over,  yea,  so  persistently  labored  over,  that  there  can 
be  no  occasion  for  any  one  to  repeat  it  until  other  discoveries  reveal  a  better 
line  of  attack,  or  greater  skill  in  instrumentation  provides  a  desirable  higher 
degree  of  accuracy.  And  let  the  report,  whether  of  progress  or  of  finished 
result,  be  brief.  Let  not  our  reasons  be,  as  were  those  of  Gratiano,  "as  two 
grains  of  wheat  hid  in  two  bushels  of  chaff,"  where  they  are  not  worth  the 
trouble  it  takes  to  find  them.  Neither  let  our  ideas  be  muddled  like  those 
of  the  freshman  who  said  he  knew  who  Esau  was — "the  chap  that  wrote 
short  stories  and  sold  his  copyright  for  a  mess  of  potash."  In  short,  have 
something  to  say,  say  it,  quit  talking  about  it.  But  above  all  have  some- 
thing to  say. 


III.    The  Educational  Group 

THE  CONTRIBUTION  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  VIRGINIA  TO  THE  PUBLIC  SCHOOL 

SYSTEM  OF  THE  STATE 

By  John  Walter  Wayland,  Ph.D.,  of  the  Harrisonburg  State  Normal  School 

The  measuring  or  even  the  estimating  of  influence  is  a  task  to  engage 
the  powers  of  a  magician  or  a  divinity.  It  is  a  task  like  unto  the  compass- 
ing of  the  sunlight  or  the  weighing  of  the  perfume  of  the  flowers.  Yet  at  the 
same  time,  if  one  is  not  able  to  comprehend  fully  or  to  estimate  adequately, 
one  can  at  least  be  certain  that  the  sun  shines,  that  the  flowers  are  sweet  and 
beautiful,  and  that  the  world  is  happier  and  better  because  of  them. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  225 

I.      THE   POTENCY  OF  IDEALS 

The  influence  of  the  University  of  Virginia  upon  public  education  in  the 
State  has  been  in  evidence,  more  or  less  potently,  both  directly  and  indirectly 
for  the  full  century  or  more  of  the  institution's  history.  First  of  all,  it  seems 
to  me,  we  should  recognize  and  appreciate  the  ideas  and  the  ideals  that  gave 
the  University  birth  and  that  have  ever  given  character  to  its  life.  When 
this  institution  was  conceived  in  the  vision  of  Mr.  Jefferson  he  thought  of  it 
as  a  part  of  a  great  whole :  a  comprehensive  gradation  of  schools  that  should 
include  all  of  our  citizens  in  its  liberal  provisions.  In  short,  he  desired 
elementary  schools  and  secondary  schools  as  well  as  a  university.  He  did 
not  perhaps  employ  the  same  terminology  that  we  employ  to-day,  but  in  his 
dream  he  saw  schools  and  teachers  for  little  children,  schools  and  teachers 
for  rank  and  callow  youth,  as  well  as  a  school  and  teachers  for  those  older, 
maturer  students  who  are  anxious  and  able  to  climb  to  the  sunlit  heights. 

It  took  many  years  of  waiting,  many  years  of  working,  to  get  Jefferson's 
full  plan  wrought  out  and  accepted ;  but  we  rejoice  in  this  good  day  in  the 
belief  that  it  is  now  being  perfected  and  appreciated.  And  all  through  the 
years  his  ideal  was  a  potent  influence,  a  whisper  of  inspiration  that  men 
heard  in  their  moments  of  reflection,  a  mighty  call  to  progress  in  every  day 
of  intellectual  and  moral  action. 

One  may  say,  therefore,  that  a  complete  public  school  system  was  part 
of  the  program  under  which  the  University  was  founded  and  under  which  it 
has,  for  the  most  part,  been  operated.  During  the  last  half-century  es- 
pecially, this  program  has  been  unfolded  more  and  more  clearly,  with  more 
and  more  definiteness  and  force,  from  year  to  year. 

2.      THE  WORK  OF  LEGISLATORS  AND  ADMINISTRATORS 

For  one  who  loves  the  University,  an  interesting  task  would  be  to  scan 
carefully  the  names  of  all  the  men  who,  since  1830  or  thereabouts,  have 
composed  the  General  Assembly  of  Virginia  and  filled  the  various  responsible 
offices  in  our  state  government — to  do  this  with  a  view  of  ascertaining  how 
many  of  these  men  have  at  some  time  been  students  here.  The  number  is 
large,  we  may  be  certain;  and  we  may  also  be  certain  that  some  of  them, 
doubtless  many  of  them,  have  aided  effectively  from  time  to  time  in  giving 
Mr.  Jefferson's  ideas  on  education  a  functioning  body  in  the  laws  and 
procedure  of  the  commonwealth.  In  so  doing  they  have  been  true  disciples 
of  our  Alma  Mater;  and  through  them,  whether  in  our  own  day  or  in  the 
days  long  past,  we  see  going  out  a  mighty  stream  of  influence,  carrying  life, 
dynamic  life,  to  our  common  schools.  For  example,  since  1902,  fifteen 
members  of  the  Virginia  State  Board  of  Education  have  been  alumni  of  the 
University;  and  among  these  fifteen  were  Charles  W.  Kent,  Lyon  G.  Tyler, 

IS 


226  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Joseph  L.  Jarman,  James  M.  Page,  Henry  C.  Ford,  John  E.  Williams,  James 
S.  Wilson,  and  four  governors :  Montague,  Swanson,  Stuart,  and  Davis. 

3.   THE  SERVICE  OF  ALUMNI  AS  TEACHERS 

Face  to  face  with  a  mighty  host  we  find  ourselves  when  we  attempt  to 
number  the  teachers  of  Virginia  who,  at  one  time  or  another,  for  long  or 
shorter  periods,  have  been  students  at  the  University.  In  the  years  imme- 
diately preceding  1870  and  in  all  the  long  Olympiads  of  ante-bellum  days, 
schools  were  being  kept  alive  here  and  there  in  Old  Virginia  by  those  whose 
torches  had  been  kindled  at  Jefferson's  altar  and  whose  vision  had  been  at 
least  in  part  uplifted  with  his  own.  Those  men  labored  provincially,  it  may 
be,  and  often  under  painful  handicaps,  but  who  will  deny  to  them  a  meed  of 
honor  in  the  better  times  that  have  come  after  them?  They  labored  and 
we  have  entered  into  their  labors.  We  are  building  better,  let  us  hope,  than 
did  they ;  but  they  often  builded  better  than  they  knew. 

Since  1870,  when  our  present  system  of  public  schools  was  inaugurated, 
alumni  of  the  University  have  been  enabled  to  assume  more  numerous  and 
more  definite  relationships  in  the  teaching  forces  of  the  State.  This  fact 
appears  with  growing  distinctness  as  we  proceed  with  our  investigations. 
Consider,  for  example,  the  influence  that  has  been  radiated  through  the 
thousands  of  teachers  that  have  attended  the  University  summer  schools 
during  the  past  thirty-odd  years.  A  conservative  estimate  would  place  the 
total  number  of  persons,  men  and  women,  who  have  attended  these  summer 
schools  within  this  period  at  15,000.  Not  all  of  this  mighty  host,  it  may  be, 
have  been  teachers ;  but  many  of  them  have  been  teachers  by  profession  and 
by  practice ;  and  thousands  of  them  have  carried  the  ideas  and  the  inspira- 
tion here  imbibed  into  the  public  schools  of  the  State. 

In  recent  years,  as  we  all  know,  the  deliberate  and  consistent  aim  in 
these  summer  schools  has  been  to  make  them  the  most  helpful  possible  to 
Virginia  teachers.  And  it  would  be  hard  to  find  any  community  in  the 
State,  however  small  or  however  secluded,  in  which  there  is  not  working  to- 
day at  least  one  school  teacher  who  is  proud  to  speak  of  the  days — the 
summer  days  so  full  of  work,  so  full  of  play,  so  full  of  joy — spent  here.  The 
services  of  University  leaders,  like  Bruce  R.  Payne,  Charles  G.  Maphis, 
and  others,  through  the  University  summer  schools,  have  been  of  incalcul- 
able value  to  public  education  throughout  the  State. 

4.      THE  UNIVERSITY  APPRECIATING  ITS  TASK 

Not  only  in  the  summer  schools  but  also  in  the  regular  policies  and 
programs  of  the  University  the  interests  and  needs  of  the  public  schools  of 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  227 

the  State  have  been  recognized  with  constantly  increasing  purpose  and 
definiteness.  This  has  been  especially  true  during  the  last  half -century. 
For  example,  as  early  as  1886,  perhaps  earlier,  the  University  faculty  ar- 
ranged for  local  examinations  to  be  given  in  the  various  counties  of  Virginia 
and  other  States  for  stimulating  and  evaluating  the  work  of  boys  and  girls 
in  the  local  schools.  These  examinations  took  the  place,  at  least  in  some 
instances,  of  high  school  graduation.  More  particular  information  con- 
cerning these  examinations  and  their  value  to  the  country  schools  will  appear 
farther  on. 

In  1905  the  Curry  Memorial  School  of  Education  was  established  at  the 
University,  and  ever  since  that  time  a  regular  aim  of  that  department  has 
been  to  touch  and  elevate  the  public  schools  of  Virginia.  All  who  remember 
the  untiring  extra-mural  activities  of  Professor  Harry  Heck,  the  first  head 
of  the  Curry  Memorial  School,  and  all  who  know  the  character  and  the  work 
of  his  successors  will  be  able  to  appreciate  the  significance  and  growing 
influence  of  this  foundation  during  the  past  sixteen  years. 

In  this  connection  we  cannot  forget  the  potency  of  the  University  in  the 
famous  "May  Campaign"  of  1905,  when  "one  hundred  of  the  ablest 
speakers  of  the  State,  including  the  governor,  delivered  three  hundred 
addresses  in  ninety -four  counties  at  one  hundred  different  meetings,"* 
all  in  behalf  of  public  education. 

Among  the  eminent  leaders  of  that  campaign  were  President  Edwin  A. 
Alderman,  Governor  Andrew  J.  Montague  (an  alumnus  of  the  University), 
and  Dr.  Bruce  R.  Payne,  whose  distinguished  connection  with  the  University 
was  then  just  beginning.  Another  gentleman  whose  share  of  honor  in  this 
May  Campaign  was  second  to  none  was  Professor  Ormond  Stone,  who  for 
thirty  years  (1882-1912)  was  a  teacher  here  and  whose  interest  in  the  public 
schools  of  the  State  was  both  constant  and  effective.  His  activities  in  behalf 
of  public  education  have  been  most  generous  and  untiring,  as  we  all  know. 
The  vigorous  rise  of  public  high  schools  followed  upon  1905,  and  much  of 
the  vigor  and  character  that  they  embodied  came  from  the  University, 
through  the  patience  and  wisdom  of  Alderman,  Payne,  and  others. 

How  many  of  the  teachers  and  alumni  of  the  University  took  part  in 
this  notable  campaign  cannot  now,  perhaps,  be  ascertained;  but  many 
participated  and  all  who  did  so  shared  in  the  cherished  social  gift  that  our 
Alma  Mater  at  that  time  made. 

Thus  by  those  who  live  in  the  University  and  in  their  work  reach  out, 
as  well  as  by  those  who  have  studied  here  and  have  gone  out  into  the  schools 
of  the  commonwealth,  the  same  or  related  gifts  have  been  bestowed.  The 
workers  within  and  the  workers  without  join  hands  across  the  same  cheering 
altar  of  service. 

'  Heatwole:  "A  History  of  Education  in  Virginia,  pages  315,  316. 


228  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

5.      ALUMNI   AS  ADMINISTRATIVE   EDUCATORS   AND   AS   TEACHERS   IN   STATE 
INSTITUTIONS  OF  HIGHER    LEARNING 

In  speaking  hitherto  of  the  teachers  of  the  State  who  have  been  stu- 
dents here,  attention  has  been  directed  especially  to  that  great  army  in  the 
common  schools.  When  we  enumerate  school  officials  and  those  teachers  in 
our  State  institutions  of  higher  learning  who  bear  the  University's  seal  the 
number  is  smaller,  to  be  sure,  but  no  less  influential.  Consider,  for  example, 
the  division  superintendents  of  schools  in  the  counties  and  cities  of  Virginia. 
Twenty-eight  of  them,  almost  exactly  one  fourth  of  the  whole  number,  are 
on  the  rolls  of  our  alumni.  Ten  members  of  the  Virginia  State  Normal 
School  Board,  the  body  which  since  191 6  has  had  the  oversight  and  the 
direction  of  our  four  state  normal  schools  for  white  women,  have  been  Uni- 
versity men.  Prior  to  191 6  there  were  separate  boards  for  these  four  in- 
stitutions, and  a  goodly  proportion  of  the  members  of  those  separate  boards 
were  also  alumni  of  the  University. 

The  first  of  these  four  normal  schools  was  established  at  Farmville  in 
1884.  The  second  was  opened  at  Harrisonburg  in  1909;  the  third  at  Fred- 
ericksburg, in  191 1 ;  and  the  fourth  at  East  Radford,  in  1913.  From  official 
records  it  appears  that  up  to  this  date  20,551  different  students  have  been 
enrolled  in  these  institutions.  Most  of  this  great  multitude  have  been 
teachers  for  shorter  or  longer  periods  in  the  public  schools  of  Virginia,  and 
they  have  been  distributed  in  every  county  and  every  city  of  the  State. 
The  significance  of  all  this  in  our  present  study  appears  in  a  moment  when 
we  observe  the  fact  that  almost  or  quite  forty  members  of  the  four  normal 
school  faculties  that  have  trained  these  20,000  teachers  have  been  graduates 
of  the  University  or  sometime  students  here. 

For  many  years  past  the  contribution  of  the  College  of  William  and 
Mary  to  the  life  and  administrative  efficiency  of  our  state  public  schools  has 
been  so  great  as  to  win  general  acknowledgment  and  appreciation.  To  this 
historic  institution  the  University  of  Virginia  herself  owes  much.  Jefferson, 
Monroe,  and  others  saw  to  it  that  the  rich  legacies  of  the  older  foundation 
became  really  and  truly  the  younger  school's  inheritances.  But  may  we  not 
say,  speaking  truly  and  gratefully,  that  in  some  measure,  through  the  cen- 
tury that  is  closing,  the  talents  that  were  received  have  been  invested  and 
returned?  For  instance,  during  twenty-one  years  (1898-1919)  the  honored 
president  of  William  and  Mary  was  Lyon  G.  Tyler,  an  alumnus  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia ;  and  contemporary  with  him,  or  at  least  serving  the  same 
generation  with  him,  we  may  count  twelve  other  distinguished  sons  of  the 
University  on  the  faculties  of  William  and  Mary.  Surely,  therefore,  one 
may  be  justified  in  saying  that,  in  this  splendid  contribution  that 
William  and  Mary  has  made  to  our  public  schools,  the  University  has 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  229 

had  some  cordial  share.     The  cooperation  of  kindred  can  certainly  be  no 
robbery. 

It  would  doubtless  be  possible,  if  one  had  time,  to  trace  relationships  of 
wholesome  cooperation  between  the  University  and  every  other  State  in- 
stitution of  higher  learning  in  Virginia  in  this  laudable  task  of  uplifting 
the  common  schools ;  but  a  reasonable  limit  must  be  our  law. 

6.      INFLUENCE    THROUGH    PRIVATE    INSTITUTIONS    OF    HIGHER    LEARNING 

And  what  shall  we  say  with  reference  to  these  same  relationships  as 
between  the  University  and  those  institutions  of  higher  learning  not  owned 
by  the  State?  Between  the  University  and  some  of  them  the  bonds  have 
perhaps  not  been  so  close  or  so  strong  as  to  be  discerned  or  acknowledged ; 
but  with  regard  to  others  the  cooperation  has  been  both  conscious  and  de- 
liberate.   Two  examples  must  suffice. 

In  1839  Charles  Lewis  Cocke,  a  college  senior  nineteen  years  old,  deter- 
mined to  dedicate  his  life  to  the  higher  education  of  women  in  the  South. 
* '  Inspired  by  the  University  of  Virginia — opened  fourteen  years  before — he 
resolved  'to  give  to  Virginia  women  the  same  thorough  mental  training  as 
that  afforded  to  young  men.'"^  In  1846  he  moved  to  Botetourt  Springs, 
near  what  is  now  Roanoke  City,  to  take  charge  of  a  school.  "The  educa- 
tional ideals  of  Thomas  Jefferson  became  the  inspiration  of  his  youth"; 
and  throughout  an  eminent  career  he  cherished  them.  For  more  than  fifty 
years  he  labored  in  the  light  of  his  splendid  hopes ;  and  for  three-quarters  of  a 
century,  now,  HoUins  College  has  been  his  growing  monument. 

In  many  counties  and  cities  of  Virginia  the  graduates  of  HoUins  College 
have  taught  worthily  in  our  public  schools.  Some  in  this  capacity  have 
served  well  two  generations.  One  of  them,  Mrs.  Betty  Chandler  Snead,  who 
graduated  in  1868,  taught  in  Halifax,  in  Essex,  in  Northampton;  had  a 
family ;  returned  to  the  schoolroom,  and  in  191 5  was  still  at  the  post  of  public 
service.  Another,  Edwina  Chandler  (Mrs.  Walter  Jones),  who  graduated  in 
1870,  taught  in  Fluvanna.  She  married  and  reared  a  large  family.  Then 
she  took  up  teaching  again.  She  was  one  of  those  teachers  who  used  the 
University  local  examinations  to  "standardize"  her  pupils.  Miss  Mary 
Miller  Snead,  now  the  valued  principal  of  a  Fairfax  County  high  school, 
another  Hollins  graduate,  is  one  of  the  number  who  testifies  to  having  taken 
the  "University  locals"  in  "Old  Flu"  under  Mrs.  Jones. 

Hollins  records  show  a  long  roll  of  alumnae  who  have  served  Virginia 
effectively  and  worthily  in  her  public  schools.  Many  other  names  might  be 
recited,  but  we  must  content  ourselves  with  a  very  few  more.  Miss  Bessie 
Randolph  of  Farmville,  Miss  Elizabeth  Cleveland  of  Harrisonburg,  Miss 

'  The  Virginia  Teacher,  April,  192 1,  page  93. 


230         Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

Lucy  Puryear  of  Radford,  Miss  Berta  Miller  of  Lynchburg,  Miss  Sully 
Hayward  of  Roanoke,  and  Mrs.  EUie  Marcus  Marx  of  Norfolk  are  all  alum- 
nae of  HoUins.  They  are  eminent  yet  typical  examples  of  the  HoUins 
graduate  as  a  vital  force  in  the  public  schools  of  Virginia.  And  it  was  one 
of  them  who  said : 

"Recalling  how  often  we  heard  the  name  of  the  University  from  Mr. 
Cocke's  lips  and  how  bracing  was  the  constant  touch  with  its  standards,  we 
are  not  surprised  to  find  his  biographer  writing :  '  The  educational  ideals  of 
Thomas  Jefferson  became  the  inspiration  of  his  youth,  and  with  astonishing 
tenacity  and  unity  of  purpose  he  pursued  them  until  he  worked  out  HoUins 
College.'"^ 

Hollins  College,  therefore,  is  a  notable  example  among  the  so-called 
private  schools  of  the  State  that  have  deliberately  aided  the  University  in 
giving  to  the  public  schools  their  delayed  birthright. 

Another  school  of  this  same  class,  younger  than  Hollins  but  eminent 
in  the  same  way,  is  Bridgewater  College. 

This  school  dates  its  beginnings  only  forty-one  years  ago,  yet  within  the 
period  of  its  brief  history  it  has  sent  out  hundreds  of  efficient  teachers  into 
the  public  schools  of  the  State.  And  every  one  of  them  has  carried  to  his 
work  some  gift  that  is  openly  and  generously  credited  to  the  University. 
The  reason  at  once  becomes  obvious  when  we  note  the  fact  that  eighteen 
different  members  of  the  Bridgewater  faculties  have  been  students  here. 
For  thirty-three  years  the  presidents  of  the  college  have  been  University 
alumni.  Daniel  C.  Flory,  the  founder  of  the  school  and  its  head  for  six  years 
was  a  student  here  two  sessions.  Walter  Bowman  Yount,  president  for 
eighteen  years  (1892-1910)  was  a  student  here  six  years.  And  John  S. 
Flory,  who  was  president  for  nine  years  (1910-1919),  and  whose  entire 
service  at  Bridgewater  to  date  totals  twenty -four  years,  was  a  student  here 
three  years  and  holds  from  the  University  his  degree  of  Doctor  of  Philosophy. 
Every  Bridgewater  student  is  able  to  testify  that  the  bond  between  his 
school  and  the  University  is  very  close. 

This  bond  and  source  of  influence  upon  our  public  schools  appears  not 
only  in  the  rank  and  file  of  teachers  trained  at  Bridgewater,  but  also  in 
certain  notable  leaders  in  education  and  legislation.  John  C.  Myers,  divi- 
sion superintendent  of  schools  in  Rockingham  County,  is  an  alumnus  of 
Bridgewater  and  of  the  University.  William  T.  Sanger,  who  needs  no  intro- 
duction to  Virginia  educators,  is  a  graduate  of  Bridgewater.  Frank  J. 
Wright,  whose  record  as  a  distinguished  teacher  and  as  a  member  of  the 
General  Assembly  of  Virginia  is  well  known,  is  an  alumnus  of  Bridgewater 
and  of  the  University.  Jacob  A.  Garber,  whose  service  to  public  education 
in  the  last  General  Assembly  was  so  conspicuous  as  to  win  unusual  approval, 

'  The  Virginia  Teacher,  April,  1921,  pages  93,  94. 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  231 

is  merely  passing  on  the  fine  things  that  he  has  received,  at  least  in  part, 
from  Bridgewater  College  and  from  our  Alma  Mater. 

7.      THE  UNIVERSITY  A   SOURCE  OF  BOOKS  FOR  THE  PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

And,  finally,  what  shall  we  say  of  the  books  for  our  common  schools 
that  have  been  written  and  published  by  University  teachers  and  University 
alumni?  Bonnycastle's  Mensuration,  Holmes's  United  States  history,  and 
Venable's  arithmetics  were  widely  used  for  many  years;  and  the  famous 
spelling  books  and  readers  by  McGuffey  have  had  an  influence  that  is  at 
once  potent,  far-reaching,  and  wholesome.  It  is  said  that  McGuffey's 
activity  in  1870  and  later,  both  in  the  University  and  elsewhere  in  the  State, 
in  securing  the  establishment  of  public  schools  and  in  commanding  them  to 
general  favor,  were  most  earnest  and  effective. 

The  excellent  series  of  readers  prepared  some  years  ago  by  President 
Alderman  was  a  notable  contribution  to  our  school  libraries  and  literature. 
In  attractive  form  and  easy  grading  he  has  made  a  fine  collection  of  prose 
and  verse — classics  old  and  new — and  placed  it  at  the  disposal  of  our  teachers 
and  their  pupils.  The  history  of  education  in  Virginia,  published  in  1916, 
by  Cornelius  J.  Heatwole,  a  son  of  Virginia,  cannot  be  overlooked  in  this 
connection;  and  the  biography  of  J.  L.  M.  Curry,  by  Alderman  and  Gordon, 
while  it  is  not  a  text  book  of  the  ordinary  type,  is  an  informing,  stimulating 
story  for  teachers — the  story  of  a  great  man  who  was  a  teacher  and  a  leader 
of  teachers. 

And  one  could  not  end  this  catalogue,  however  brief  and  fragmentary  it 
may  be,  without  mentioning  specially  the  Library  of  Southern  Literature,  a 
monumental  work  in  sixteen  splendid  volumes,  the  compilation  of  which  was 
directed  largely  from  the  University  of  Virginia  and  which  is  a  veritable 
boon  not  only  to  Virginia  schools  but  to  those  also  of  every  state  of  this 
nation. 

To  indicate  further  the  influence  of  the  University  upon  Virginia  public 
schools  and  to  illustrate  more  particularly  some  of  the  statements  already 
made,  the  following  charming  story  is  presented.  It  is  a  first-hand  contri- 
bution to  this  study,  made  by  one  who  has  recorded  definite  observations  of 
the  influences  we  are  tracing,  and  who  is  herself  an  eminent  example  of  those 
students  and  teachers  who  have  received  rich  gifts  from  our  Alma  Mater, 
even  though  they  have  not,  as  a  rule,  been  numbered  among  her  sons  and 
daughters. 

"Judge  James  O.  Shepherd,  a  University  man,  was  the  first  superin- 
tendent of  schools  in  Fluvanna  County.  He  rallied  around  him  a  teaching 
force  representative  of  nearly  all  the  leading  families  of  the  county.  He  thus 
(and  in  many  other  ways)  set  the  standard  high  and  estabhshed  from  the 


232  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

beginning  the  respectability,  and  even  the  gentility,  of  the  public  school.  I 
recall  playing  with  a  child- visitor  from  an  adjoining  county,  who  spoke  so 
disdainfully  of  'free  schools'  that  I  did  not  once  dream  that  they  were  the 
same  thing  as  our  honored  public  schools — and  I  now  have  reason  to  believe 
that  they  indeed  were  not  the  same. 

"Later  Judge  Shepherd  harped  on  this  one  string  until  every  child 
among  us  caught  the  note :  '  We  need  good  public  schools  devoted  to  the 
higher  branches.  We  have  the  elementary  school  for  the  foundation. 
Yonder  we  have  the  University  for  the  top.  But  we  have  a  great  gap  be- 
tween. We  need  to  make  the  connection  by  means  of  a  public  high  school 
that  can  prepare  the  boys  for  the  University.'  And  he  worked  the  citizens 
up  to  contribute  liberally  to  this  cause  and  obtained  special  dispensation 
from  the  General  Assembly  to  establish  at  the  county  seat  that  new  thing — 
a  standard  rural  public  high  school.  I  was  always  led  to  understand  that 
this  was  the  first  of  its  kind  in  the  State.  .  .  , 

"Is  it  at  all  significant  that  the  lifelong  home  of  Judge  Shepherd  is 
'Mountain  View?'  Certainly  it  was  from  that  hilltop  that  they  used  to 
point  out  to  us  a  symmetrical  little  blue  peak,  Monticello,  adding  in  tones 
almost  reverent  that  just  beyond  was  the  University. 

' '  One  more  fact  about  the  Judge.  When  I  left  for  HoUins,  he  gave  me  a 
lead  pencil  with  the  parting  injunction  that  I  should  write  and  rewrite  Latin 
exercises  very  carefully,  'looking  up  things '  which  I  did  not  know. 

"It  was  in  1886,  when  Judge  Shepherd  and  his  neighbors,  the  school 
trustees,  were  moving  heaven  and  earth  and  the  State  Legislatiu-e  to  estab- 
lish a  rural  high  school  at  the  county  seat — always  with  the  definite  ideal  of 
preparing  boys  for  the  University — for  that  was  never  omitted  from  the 
statement  of  the  case — that  my  teacher  read  in  the  Louisville  Courier- 
Journal  of  certain  '  University  Local  Examinations '  which  would  be  held 
at  various  centers  throughout  the  South  just  one  month  later.  Her 
prompt  letter  of  inquiry  brought  from  the  University  itself  a  pamphlet 
definitely  stating  the  subjects,  the  scope,  and  the  requirements  of  these 
examinations. 

"The  next  year,  perhaps,  a  center  was  established  in  Fluvanna,  and 
for  some  years  thereafter  it  was  the  habit  for  the  private  schools  of  Flu- 
vanna, as  well  as  for  the  new  public  high  school,  to  stir  their  students' 
ambition  to  pass  these  examinations.  No  doubt  this  was  true  in  many 
other  sections  also, — these  local  examinations  taking  the  place  of  high 
school  graduation. 

"First  there  was  a  preliminary  examination  in  elementary  subjects — 
geography,  grammar,  oral  reading,  etc. — which  must  be  passed  before  the 
candidate  could  be  considered  for  the  'higher  branches '  of  geometry,  Cicero, 
Shakespeare,  etc. 


be 
.S 


(K 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia         233 

' '  I  think  I  shall  go  on  now  that  I  am  recalling  this  occasion  and  set  down 
some  of  my  own  experiences  of  that  new  era  for  me,  as  a  sample  of  what  these 
examinations  might  mean  in  inspiration. 

"My  teacher  said  that  I  was  to  go  to  the  University  and  take  these 
examinations  instead  of  my  own  'finals.'  The  delight  of  it — the  thing  that 
made  it  a  great  adventure  instead  of  a  heavy  task — was  that  she  said  if  I 
passed  she  would  consider  it  a  success,  but  if  I  should  not  pass  she  would  not 
judge  it  a  failure,  under  the  circumstances  of  the  brief  four  weeks  of  prepara- 
tion. 

"Such  a  sense  of  the  greatness  of  this  quest!  Such  a  reviewing  of 
geometry  (and  geography) !  I  had  never  heard  of  the  Manilian  Law,  but  it 
read  very  much  like  parts  of  Cicero  that  I  had  been  taught.  I  had  never 
studied  'literature'  except  Shaw's  History  of  English  Literature.  Neither 
my  teacher  nor  I  knew  that  there  was  such  a  thing  as  an  annotated  edition 
of  a  play  or  a  poem.  But  there  was  a  leather-backed  Shakespeare  in  the 
house,  of  course,  which  people  read,  and  sometimes  read  aloud,  though  the 
required  play,  The  Tempest,  was  new  to  me  until  that  full  month  when, 
armed  with  the  unabridged  dictionary,  I  hammered  at  the  bard's 
meaning. 

"Upon  reaching  Charlottesville  (the  first  night  I  ever  spent  in  a 
town)  I  found  the  other  candidate  for  the  examination  to  be  a  girl  at- 
tending Mrs.  Meade's  school — Emma  Moser,  afterwards  for  many  years 
a  valued  teacher  in  the  Charlottesville  High  School.  This  girl  mentioned 
her  Hudson  edition  of  The  Tempest,  with  notes.  I  soon  had  it  in  my  pos- 
session, and  studied  it  all  night  long  (the  noise  of  the  great  city  of  C.  being 
too  much  for  a  wink  of  sleep  anyway).  Why,  Hudson  told  you  every- 
thing you  had  wondered  about !  He  seemed  the  friendliest  writer  in  the 
world. 

"Again,  the  gracious  dignified  Mrs.  Meade,  in  gold-pinned  cap,  having 
to  leave  me  in  her  library  when  her  class  bell  rang,  asked  whether  she  could 
do  anything  for  her  timid  guest.  '  If  you  could  lend  me  a  history  of  England 
fuller  than  Goodrich's. '  '  Why,  yes ;  here  is  one  sent  me  lately  by  one  of  my 
former  pupils.' 

"Thus  I  was  introduced  to  Green's  Short  History  oj  the  English  People. 
I  devoured  its  pages  about  Pitt's  plans  for  applying  among  his  countrymen 
the  great  principles  of  Adam  Smith's  Political  Economy,  and  how  the  French 
Revolution  broke  into  his  high  hopes.  The  book  was  so  different  from  Peter 
Parley!  Best  of  all,  the  writer  of  the  examination  questions  for  the  next  day 
had  evidently  just  been  reading  Green  also,  for  he  followed  his  lines  exactly, 
and  I  could  write  voluminously  in  answer,  and  love  Richard  Green  as  a 
friend  evermore. 

"At  last  the  hour  actually  came  for  the  examination.    Charles  S.  Ven- 


234  Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia 

able  was  in  charge — the  first  professor  of  the  revered  University  that  my 
eyes  had  rested  upon — and  even  then  they  rested  only  upon  his  shoes.  I 
was  too  much  abashed  to  look  into  the  face  of  the  great  man  'who  had  made 
the  arithmetic  and  who  understood  exactly  why  you  invert  the  divisor,  and 
everything.'  So  I  gazed  at  his  feet.  I  recall  now  just  how  they  looked  and 
that  I  felt  distinct  satisfaction  and  almost  a  touch  of  wonder  that  they 
rested  upon  the  earth.  He  was  kindness  itself,  and  the  thought  of  that  good 
and  wise  man  still  brings  always  an  upward  pull. 

"The  first  thing  in  the  preliminary  examination  was  to  read  aloud  some 
page  from  some  book.  Professor  Venable  walked  casually  to  one  of  the 
many  shelves  and  just  as  casually  pulled  out  a  volume,  turned  its  pages  and 
chose  one  at  random.  Would  it  all  dance  before  me  like  hieroglyphics? 
It  was  the  only  page  in  that  book  I  had  ever  seen.  The  winter  before  I  had 
been  studying  in  my  teacher's  room  one  evening.  An  old  lady  was  visiting 
her.  My  teacher  was  reading  to  her  from  this  very  book.  The  old  lady 
dropped  a  stitch  in  her  knitting.  It  misbehaved  sadly,  that  stitch.  It 
ran  back  row  after  row.  The  teacher  had  to  stop  and  pick  it  up.  She 
handed  me  the  book  that  the  reading  might  not  break  off.  I  read  aloud 
a  page,  and  then  the  stitch  was  all  right  and  I  went  back  to  my  lessons. 
And  now  that  page  was  handed  me  to  read  as  a  first  omen  at  the  University 
of  Virginia.  .  .  . 

"At  the  end  of  the  last  examination  there  was  a  question  that  seemed 
to  invite  my  opinion.  (It  was  on  Shakespeare.)  Could  I  dare  to  offer 
what  nobody  thought  but  just  me?  I  recall  saying  to  myself,  'I'm  twenty- 
five  miles  from  home.  They'll  never  hear  of  the  audacity  of  it.  I'll  never 
see  these  professors  again.     I  believe  I'll  do  it.     I'll  take  a  fling.' 

"And  I  did.  I  remember  feeling  as  if  I  were  flying — as  if  for  once 
and  in  some  far  off  way — and  never  to  be  dared  again — I  were  flying 
— and  in  the  atmosphere  of  those  whom  my  imagination  ranked  the 
highest. 

"He  must  have  laughed — whoever  looked  over  that  examination.  One 
could  easily  laugh  at  the  importance  which  I  attach  to  it  now.  But  I  go 
back  to  that  day  when  I  see  the  word  Renaissance.  That  examination  was 
the  enfranchisement  of  my  thought.  However  pitifully  little  that  has 
meant  to  anybody  else,  it  has  meant  a  good  deal  to  me,  and  I  thank  the 
University  and  Thomas  Jefferson  for  it. 

"There  was  a  student  who  brought  his  books  and  'sat  with'  the  candi- 
dates when  Professor  Venable  could  not  be  there.  In  spite  of  my  high  re- 
spect, I  must  have  looked  him  over  from  toe  to  top,  for  I  recall  distinctly  his 
red  head.  He  hesitated  when  I  asked  him  how  to  spell  Guinea,  but  I  thought 
it  was  because  his  mind  was  on  higher  things.  I  asked  him  whether  I'd 
better  write  fully  or  concisely.     'If  it's  literature,'  he  said,  'I  think  you'd 


Centennial  of  the  University  of  Virginia  235 

better  chat  along ';  which  I  thought  a  deHghtfuUy  familiar  and  condescend- 
ing mode  of  speech  for  one  whose  own  daily  words  must  all  be  exalted  far 
above  'chat  along.'"' 

'  Miss  Elizabeth  Pendleton  Cleveland. 


[Concluding  Note  by  the  Editor. — Shortly  after  the  Centennial  Celebration  the  General  Chair- 
man formally  requested  each  speaker,  whose  name  appears  on  the  official  program,  to  furnish  the 
manuscript  of  his  address  for  pubUcation  in  this  volume  of  proceedings.  All  the  addresses  received 
at  the  Centennial  office  have  accordingly  been  included.] 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below, 
or  oa  the  date  to  which  renewed.  Renewals  only: 

Tel.  No.  642-3405 
Renewals  may  be  made  4  days  prior  to  date  due. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


^^ss 


LD21A-40m-3,'72 
(Qll738l0)476-A-32 


General  Library 

Uoiveisity  of  California 

Berkeley 


